Budget 2024-25: PM Shehbaz to review development programmes in NEC meeting today
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Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will chair a critical meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) at the PM House today to finalize the development programme for the next financial year, as reported by The News. This meeting will also involve reviewing the current financial year's development programme and will include attendance from the four provincial chief ministers and representatives from both the federation and provinces.
During the meeting, the NEC is expected to set economic targets for the upcoming fiscal year 2024-2025 and present the 13th five-year plan (2024-2029) for approval. Key proposed targets for the next fiscal year include:
- **Economic Growth**: A target of 3.6% for economic growth, slightly up from the current fiscal year's target of 3.5%.
- **Inflation**: An average inflation target of 12%, a significant decrease from the current fiscal year's target of 21%.
- **Agriculture Sector Growth**: A proposed target of 2% growth, down from 3.5% for the current fiscal year.
- **Industrial Sector Growth**: A proposed growth target of 4.4%, up from the current year's target of 3.4%.
- **Services Sector Growth**: A proposed target of 4.1%, compared to the current year's 3.6%.
- **Investment**: A target of 14.2% of GDP.
- **National Savings**: A target of 13.3% for the next fiscal year.
The federal government has developed a comprehensive five-year plan (2024-2029) to establish significant economic goals. This plan includes a macroeconomic framework and covers various areas such as energy, balance of payments, development budget, food and agriculture, population, poverty, and governance reforms. This five-year plan is set to be approved in the upcoming budget.
Additionally, the NEC will review the proposed public investment for the next financial year, the federal development programme, provincial annual development plans, the development plan of state-owned enterprises, and progress reports from the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) and the Central Development Working Party (CDWP).
