Pakistan braces for tough times as floods start taking toll on the economy
While it is too early to estimate the post-flood job losses, Pakistan’s GDP growth this year may fall to just 2 percent against the initial target of 5pc, according to the Ministry of Finance.
As a rule of thumb 1 percentage point loss in GDP growth in Pakistan results in one million job losses, reports Dawn.
This means that during the current fiscal year ending in June 2023, the number of jobless people in Pakistan will rise by an additional 3m. All owing to the deluge 2022 that has killed around 1,200 people and has affected more people and farmlands than the 2010 super floods.
Inflation in August has already hit a 49-year high primarily due to the higher cost of fuel and electricity. It may rise even higher as the country begins to fix flood-related losses to the economy. Tough times ahead!
According to initial estimates by the government, the 2022 monsoon floods have caused at least $11 billion in losses to the economy. This is why the government is considering requesting the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to offer a free-of-conditions loan facility just like the one it had offered in 2020 to mitigate the economic fallout of Covid-19.
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