Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Monday announced Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has formed a high-powered committee led by Deputy P.M. Ishaq Dar to devise a roadmap to sustain the economy without any International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.
Launching the Monthly Development Update for December 2025 at a press conference in Islamabad, he emphasized that Pakistan could either continue to seek loans from the global lender or shift to export-led growth. “There is no other choice but to increase exports to $60 billion within four years and cross $100 billion by 2035,” he said. “With a status quo approach, the country’s GDP will stand at $600 billion, but it needs to reach the $1 trillion mark. If our neighboring country’s economy can reach $9 trillion, then why can Pakistan not reach $1 trillion?” he questioned, referring to India.
Iqbal has said he has already presented a roadmap for export-led growth, proposing that the manufacturing sector continue operating even on national holidays to avoid disruption in supply chains. He claimed exports could rise to $60 billion over the medium term, adding there is potential to boost exports by $20 billion over the next few years.
The minister said that under his proposed plan the focus would shift from low-value to high-value-added products, with selected sectors targeted to generate multibillion-dollar exports. He said trade bodies have been consulted to prepare a district-wise strategy for boosting exports.
He acknowledged that exports had grown by a nominal 1% during July-October, adding the impatience over slow GDP growth was valid. However, he stressed, the government did not wish to push for consumer-led growth, as done by the PTI-led government, as that resulted in a trade deficit that evaporated the country’s foreign exchange reserves, triggering massive devaluation and inflation.
During his press talk, Iqbal also defended the first quarter (July-September) GDP growth of 3.7%, maintain both the United Nations and the IMF had authenticated and validated it. To a question on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he said the last Joint Cooperation Committee meeting was held in China but Islamabad has yet to receive its official minutes. Once finalized, he said, both side would pursue the agreed agenda.
According to the minister, Pakistan is pursuing knowledge corridors with the U.S. and China to secure 10,000 scholarships from each country. He said there is great potential to focus on reforms in energy, taxation and other structural bottlenecks over the next two years while the country remains under an IMF program. The government, he said, would also focus on olive production and the commercialization of tea to reduce import reliance. On polio eradication, he said Pakistan contributed $638 million and Bill Gates contributed $2 billion and the country hopes to be polio-free within the next few years.
Iqbal said Rs. 356 billion had been authorized for the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP), with Rs. 314 billion of this sanctioned so far. Of this, he said, Rs. 210 billion has been utilized in the first six months of FY26 against Rs. 148 billion utilized in the same period last year.
Monthly report
In its Monthly Development Update report, the Planning Ministry said the first quarter (July-September) of the current financial year recorded economic growth of 3.7%, including 2.9% growth in the agriculture sector; 9.4% industry; and 2.4% services. The average inflation for the first six months of FY26 clocked in at 5.2% against 7.2% in the same period last year.
Tax revenue collected by the Federal Board of Revenue increased by 9.5% over the six-month period, with a 7.3% rise recorded in December alone. The fiscal deficit during the first five months (July-November) widened to 0.8% of GDP, up from 0.03% during the same period last year.