United Business Group (UBG) of FPCCI Chairman and SAARC Chamber of Commerce Vice President Iftikhar Ali Malik on Sunday said that sustainable national development requires 70 per cent growth in GDP over the next ten years.
Maintainable growth in GDP is imperative for provision of affordable facilities to masses and for settling issues of rampant unemployment for which new investments, savings and increased tax collections are necessary, he said.
Business community has full faith in the leadership of PM Nawaz Sharif and economic vision of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to steer the country out of the problems, he said while speaking to FPCCI President Abdul Rauf Alam, ICCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh and IWCCI founder President Samina Fazil.
The veteran business leader said that exports are going down due to global recession while savings are stagnant for which rate of return must be improved.
He said that tax net should be broadened and investment should be encouraged to change the situation.
Iftikhar Ali Malik said that the only way to provide relief to majority of the world’s population living in the SAARC region is through increased trade and reduced friction.
He said that a study by the ADB says that an additional three billion Asians could enjoy living standards similar to those in Europe today but to achieve this end, economic policies must be revisited.
Iftikhar Ali Malik said that the region could account for over half of global output by the middle of this century but that “we are not prepared for it”.
Curtailing movement of businessmen has been identified as one of the biggest hurdles in the progress of the region which is home to 22 per cent of world’s population with 45 per cent of young people, he said.