Islamabad: The National Economic Council has unanimously approved six agenda items, including a national development budget worth 4224 billion rupees for the next fiscal year.
According to Radio Pakistan, the approval was granted at the NEC meeting held in Islamabad with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chairing the session, and the presence of all four provincial chief ministers from Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan. It was announced that 1000 billion rupees will be allocated for federal projects, while 2869 billion rupees will be designated for provincial development projects.
The council also approved the macroeconomic framework and targets for the upcoming fiscal year. Relevant ministries, provinces, and government institutions were directed to collaborate with the Ministry of Planning to achieve the targets set in the proposed annual plan for 2025-2026. The development projects will prioritize sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, water, and housing.
The NEC gave the green light to the 13th five-year development plan and the Uraan Pakistan Framework. A third-party monitoring report on the annual National Development Program was presented, leading to a decision that future project planning should incorporate recommendations from this report.
Additionally, the NEC approved a GDP growth rate of 2.7 percent for the outgoing fiscal year and projected a growth rate of 4.2 percent for the next financial year. During the meeting, revised indicators regarding the performance of the economy for the fiscal year 2024-25 were presented.
The meeting was informed about the expenditure of 3483 billion rupees on the annual national development, with 1100 billion rupees as the federation’s share and 2383 billion rupees as the provinces’ share. Remittances saw an increase of 30.9 percent from July 2024 to April 2025, and the current account balance remained positive for the first time.
The fiscal deficit for the year 2024-25 decreased to 2.6 percent of the GDP, while the primary balance increased to 3 percent of the GDP. The policy rate gradually fell to 11 percent due to government policies, and loans for private sector development rose to 681 billion from July 2024 to May 2025. The GDP volume is expected to reach 114 trillion rupees in 2024-25.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed gratitude for the unanimous approval of all agenda points, emphasizing that such consensus is a guarantee of Pakistan’s bright future. He addressed the meeting, asserting that the people of Pakistan are united against India to protect the country’s integrity and that India’s threats regarding water resources are unacceptable. A comprehensive strategy will be developed in consultation with all provincial Chief Ministers to address Indian aggression.
The Prime Minister highlighted the central role of the agricultural sector in boosting foreign exchange and growth rate, indicating that a strategy is being formulated to enhance agricultural production.