Daily Times

Over the past few days alone a couple of reputable international ratings agencies have maintained Pakistan’s B- rating with a stable outlook. And government functionaries have, perhaps expectedly, celebrated it as something of an achievement. Truth be told, though, it is an achievement in that nobody downgraded Pakistan any further, like India has been reduced to just a notch above junk status. The reason is the coronavirus pandemic and the devastation it has brought to economies all over the world. We have, in fact, already entered a steep global recession that will surely devastate emerging markets if the greatest care is not taken. So, while Pakistan’s profile was not improved at all, which means that not much has really changed or improved, there is the rather astonishing fast that an economy so vulnerable was able to survive the worst of the pandemic without a downgrade.

This is about as good a pat on the back as the government could have received, given the circumstances, from respected and reputable organisations. No doubt they feel a little secure about Pakistan because of the ongoing IMF program, which means that no matter what happens they will have ample time to adjust if things really begin to go south and the government is unable to arrest the downtrend. The agencies have also pointed out, in considerable detail, all that is still wrong with the economy and that the debt bomb, if not diffused soon, could well explode with devastating consequences, even though external financing is secure for the time being.

Authorities must now note all that is of concern and begin taking corrective measures. After all, if the leading ratings agencies of the world are happy with us, then investors will be encouraged to take us more seriously. So far the Pakistani government has done a number of right things to deal with a very demanding situation. The smart lockdowns worked, the reopening of the economy is largely working, and now we have maintained our rating. Now we must take what the agencies have said very seriously and begin addressing all the concerns. It would not only get us even better reviews going forward, perhaps also fetch us some millions or billions in investor funds, but most importantly it will put our own house in order, which will get us all sorts of gains. *