Expanding tax net is inevitable for economic growth: Minister

Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Mohammad Aurangzeb on Tuesday said that expanding the tax net is inevitable for economic growth, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Addressing a workshop on tax system reforms organized by the Ministry of Finance in Islamabad, Senator Aurangzeb said efforts to improve the taxation system were continuing, with further measures being taken to bring more taxpayers into the tax net.

The finance minister said tax reforms had contributed to an improvement in the country’s economic performance, while broader economic changes had helped strengthen growth and move Pakistan towards greater economic stability.

He emphasized that the country’s future economic progress should be sustainable and driven by exports. He also noted that Pakistan had recorded a historic increase in remittances.

Aurangzeb said the economy had recovered from a negative growth rate of 0.3 per cent and was moving towards improvement through economic reforms.

Highlighting the country’s external financial position, the minister said Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves had previously been sufficient to cover only two weeks of imports. They now provided coverage for more than three months of imports, he added.

He further stated that Pakistan’s external debt had increased by $4 billion over the past four years.