The Federal Government has Proposed Rs.1.3 Trillion Budget for Development Plan
06 June 2020, Islamabad: The federal government and four provinces have proposed Rs.1.3 trillion for development spending in the next year, which is 18% less than the actual budget.
The fund distribution has caused a discontent between the centre and federal units as they have raised an objection over ignoring the province while distributing the budget allotted.
The Annual Plan Coordination Committee (APCC) has recommended a budget of Rs 1.312 trillion for the fiscal year 2020-2021 to the National Economic Council (NEC). The budget allocated for the next year is lower by Rs.292 billion as compared to the original budget of Rs.1.61 trillion for the outgoing fiscal year.
The APCC proposed Rs.536 billion for the Public Sector Development Programme(PSDP), down Rs.165 billion for 24% over the current year’s original budget. The amount suggested is not enough to meet the requirements of ongoing projects and the government is under pressure to start some new development scheme.
The IMF has proposed 0.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) as the primary deficit target- the deficit that excludes interest payments. There are certain projects which were left uncompleted like Gwadar International Airport and Kachhi canal project.
As against the original Rs701-billion federal PSDP, the APCC working paper showed an expenditure of Rs623 billion in the outgoing fiscal year, 11% less than the budget. Similarly, the provincial development spending has been shown at only Rs540 billion for the current fiscal year, down 41% over the original budget.