Finance Minister urges universal tax compliance

DUBAI: Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday stated that there will be no further amnesty schemes for the citizens and that everyone has to pay their tax.

Speaking at an event in Dubai, the finance minister said that economic initiatives such as tax compliance was crucial for the country’s welfare and transcended any government.

Aurangzeb claimed that foreign exchange reserves were soon to reach between $9 to $10 billion dollars by June of this year.

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On  the question of privatisation programme, Aurangzeb stated that the process for the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) would be completed  by July. He also said that negotiations for the privatization of Islamabad Airport was underway with Turkey and other European countries.

He added that even Lahore Airprt and Karachi airports were slated for privatisation.

The minister brought up Pakistan’s current financial ‘stability’, citing efforts to reduce the current account deficit yielded “positive results”. He revealed that the World Bank has pledged support for the “Digital Pakistan” initiative over the next decade.

On the topic of international relations, Aurangzeb pointed out the successful international payments  recently made by Pakistan and the restoration of trust among global institutions in Pakistan.

The finance minister also expressed confidence in securing short-term trade finance from United Arab Emirates (UAE) banks.