Daily Times

The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry’s Businessmen Panel (BMP) has said that foreign remittances flows are crucial which can support the country’s account balance amidst low volumes of foreign direct investment (FDI) and nominal growth of exports.

He said that overseas Pakistanis living in Gulf should further be motivated to maintain an upward momentum in remittances, as they contributed more than 60 percent of the total inflows during last couple of months.

FPCCI former president and Businessmen Panel (BMP) Chairman Mian Anjum Nisar said that remittances can help not only in financing the deficit in import payments but also in foreign debt repayments, suggesting the government to focus on structural reforms, which can revive Pakistan’s economic growth with major focus on incentives for overseas Pakistanis workers.

The Businessmen Panel Chairman said that Pakistan has been witnessing a significant decline in workers’ remittances on a year-on-year basis, however it surged by 5.34% on a month-on-month basis, reaching a total of $2.21 billion, owing to several positive factors, including improved transparency and the implementation of stringent measures against dollar smuggling. These initiatives have helped create a more secure and regulated environment for remittance transactions.

He said that remittances for Sept came in at $2.21 billion, according to data shared by the State Bank of Pakistan. This figure, while an improvement from last month’s $2.09 billion, was significantly lower than market expectations of $2.4-2.5 billion. On a month-on-month basis, remittances rose by 5.3%. However, they declined by 11.24% compared to last year, when remittances stood at $2.49 billion.

In a statement issued here, the BMP Chairman asked the government to announce attractive package for overseas Pakistanis to enhance the volume of foreign inflows because this is the only hope which can support the country’s account balance, as the remittances have started declining, showing a huge fall during last month.

If government supports overseas Pakistanis and provides them incentives, they can play a vital role in boosting Pakistan’s economy through their remittances and investments for high economic growth. If the falling trend persists in the remaining months of this fiscal year, it could pose serious problems for the economic managers as the govt heavily relies on remittances, which are much higher than the country’s total export proceeds.