ISLAMABAD (Dunya News/Web Desk) – The government has decided to increase development budget for the next fiscal year, sources say, as Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb is expected to table the document before the Lower House of Parliament on June 8.
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The sources say the federal development budget is expected to reach Rs1,200 billion with an increase of Rs260bn when compared with the outgoing financial year, after different ministries and divisions requested for over Rs2,900bn.
Meanwhile, not all of federal ministries and divisions would be part of the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), with the completion of ongoing projects being the priority.
Earlier, it was reported that the PSDP would be fixed around Rs1,000bn, which means the ruling coalition is now confident to raise government spending to boost economic activities amid the imminent interest rate cuts and a foreign investment spree led by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
REVENUNE COLLECTION TARGET
Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Amjed Zubair Tiwana says they may have a tax target of more than 12,500bn, as he had an informal chat with Dunya TV on Monday.
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Various proposals are under consideration for tax target and collection, he said, but added that their first priority was to achieve the numbers fixed for 2023-24 – the current fiscal year ending on June 30.
Tiwana, on the occasion, also talked about the enhancing revenue collection, as not only Aurangzeb but also Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has repeatedly vowed to increase Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio to 15 per cent – one of the lowest in the world – which is currently below 9pc.
TAX NET EXPANSION
He said registration under the Tajir Dost Scheme – an initiative to encourage traders to become part of tax net as retail sector has been contributing far less than to the national exchequer its actual size – would also be boosted in 2024-25.
The FBR is working on expanding the scope of Track and Trace System to control tax evasion, Tiwana said, adding that different measures would be part of the budget document to bring the non-filers into tax net.