Global Voting Fest — III on February 9, 2024Taking Latin America into consideration, general elections are scheduled to be held in Mexico in the first week of June 2024. Voters will elect a new president to serve a six-year term, all 500 members of the Chamber of Deputies and all 128 members of the Senate of the Republic. The country has almost 100 […]
Global Voting Fest – II on February 8, 2024Bangladeshi general elections were held in the first week of January 2024 under the auspices of the Bangladesh Election Commission. Notably, all major opposition parties were opposing the General Elections. Massive rallies have led to mass arrests of opposition leaders. As expected, Sheikh Hasina secured her fifth term as Bangladeshi prime minister in an election […]
Global Voting Fest – I on February 5, 2024China’s inexorable rise continues. It is no more just a factory for the world but a muscular, aggressive power on the world stage, well on its way to super powerdom. America is unenviably retreating from its global leadership role as a whimsical president losing the grip on the world order his country built. At home […]
Expanding the Tax Ambit (Part II) on August 11, 2023There is also an imperative to review and restructure Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), particularly the Pak-China FTA. The latter was signed in 2006 and came into effect in 2007, marking a critical juncture in the trajectory of economic development in Pakistan. Currently, it is based on the 6,786 tariff lines mutually agreed upon between the […]
Expanding the Tax Ambit (Part I) on August 7, 2023The federal government of Pakistan sets revenue collection target of Rs 9,415 billion for fiscal year 2023-24. The budgetary targets are ambitious but achievable by exploring un-chartered territories. FBR has undertaken number of reforms and made automated its business processes in an efficient manner; it has also experimented simplified tax assessment but the tax to […]
Dissecting Revenue Stream (Part II) on July 17, 2023Taxation is largely dependent on the nature of the economy and its direction of growth or otherwise. There are different measures for assessing an economic situation. It can be based on both economic indicators of some critical and strategic nature as well as on its ratings given by international rating agencies, such as Moody’s Investor […]
Dissecting Revenue Stream (Part I ) on July 16, 2023The federal government of Pakistan presented a federal budget of Rs14.460 trillion for the fiscal year 2023-24 on 09 June 2023, with the GDP target set at 3.5% and the fiscal deficit targeted at 6.54% of the GDP. The government has set itself a target of collecting Rs12, 163 billion in gross revenue receipts, out […]
Rail Corridors in Pakistan (Part III) on May 7, 2023When taking into account the existing cross-border railway connectivity of Pakistan, it emerges that at present Pakistan has very restricted original connectivity which is limited to India at Khokarapar, Wagha, Amruka & Chakamru. The railway connectivity with Iran is from Quetta to Taftan and Ziadan. Pakistan does not have a rail connection with Afghanistan and […]
Rail Corridors in Pakistan (Part II) on May 6, 2023A railway system is an ideal mode for bulk movement of freight cargo and passengers and the rail network of Pakistan comprises 11,881 km. Railways used to be the Government’s priority up to 1970 but it declined due to road development, which has political ownership. The railways have remained neglected by successive governments in the […]
Rail Corridors in Pakistan (Part I) on May 5, 2023Developing amicable relations with China has always been a common perception in Pakistan that transcends all political differences and enjoys a high degree of agreement. Both countries have maintained the momentum of close high-level exchanges, strengthened strategic communication and jointly led the direction of China-Pakistan relations. The month of May 2023 marks the 72nd anniversary […]