Islamabad:
Experts in a pre-budget dialog on Wednesday called for inclusive fiscal reforms in the upcoming budget to strengthen children and women who are getting the least attention in the fiscal discourse in the country as a remaining component.
The dialogue on the ‘strengthening of fiscal policies for inclusive and sustainable development: The advance of children and gender-responses’ investment’ was jointly organized by the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Unicef Pakistan and Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).
The dialogue, which mainly focused on adapting Pakistan’s fiscal strategy with inclusive growth goals, gathered central government officials, economists, development partners and civil society representatives to consider the reorientation of a fiscal framework against equity, sustainability and inclusive growth.
The speakers said that with a budget deficit of more than 6.8 percent of GDP and debt levels exceeding 70 percent, there is an urgent need to protect and expand investment in health, education, nutrition and social protection. Despite tax revenue below 10 percent of GDP, they said development for children and marginalized groups cannot be delayed.
Insight from UNICEF’s public spending reviews (PERS) revealed a sustained gap between political obligations and actual awards of social sector, especially in provinces such as Sindh, where the cost of education expenses has dropped to 1.8 percent of GDP.
Anchored in the government’s Uraan Pakistan program – specifically equity and empowerment – column – called on the speakers for targeted tax changes against inclusive and people -centrated development. Key priorities include digital literacy, green skills, educational access and bourgeois engagement, especially for women, young people and underrated societies.
