Shaukat Tarin says 'want to get rid of IMF programme'

KARACHI: Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has said that they wanted to get rid of International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the earliest, ARY News reported on Saturday.

Shaukat Tarin, while addressing an event in Karachi today, said that the culture of acquiring loans from different countries should be ended. He added that the government wanted to get rid of the IMF programme at the earliest.

He criticised that only two million out of 38 families are taxpayers in Pakistan. Tarin said that the government is making efforts to bring non-filers under the tax net.

READ: NOT REMOVING PAKISTAN FROM FATF GREY LIST ‘INJUSTICE’: SHAUKAT TARIN

Tax reforms will be introduced for retailers and the regulations related to the financial matters were formulated after many deliberations, the finance minister said.

The finance minister said that the Kamyab Jawan programme was overhauled due to the Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Youth Affairs Usman Dar. Kamyab Jawan programme is a mega initiative and it will be expanded countrywide this month, he added.

Regarding the issues related to the business community, Shaukat Tarin vowed that the government has taken notice of the problems being faced by the businesspersons and it will be addressed on a priority basis.

READ: IMF LOAN TRANCHE WILL BRING STABILITY TO ECONOMY: SHAUKAT TARIN

Earlier in the month, Shaukat Tarin had said that the Pakistani rupee staged a sharp recovery against the United States (US) dollar after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a $1 billion loan tranche.

The minister had said the domestic currency started strengthening against the dollar following the approval of the loan tranche by the Fund.

Shaukat Tarin had predicted that the rupee would continue to recover in the days to come, adding that he has been warning elements who were involved in the speculative trade and hoarding of the dollar that the rupee would move the other side.