Pakistan’s national debt has shot up to almost 75% of GDP in the latest finance ministry report on the subject. Still, the billions they spend on debt servicing could also be put to better use investing in the economy and citizen services. Meanwhile, debt spending can imply economic mismanagement and have disastrous consequences when it is towards non-development expenditure, such as covering pension fund gaps, rather than education, health and infrastructure, which pay themselves off by stimulating economic growth. Pakistan, on the other hand, has also seen foreign debt steadily creep up, and paying it off — or even reining it in — is impossible without corresponding GDP growth and improvements in the balance of trade. Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.

Source: The Nation February 04, 2024 10:32 UTC