Self-reliance, tactical solutions needed to address economic problems: PM.

ISLAMABAD -- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said the current economic scenario of Pakistan required tactical solutions to address economic problems and stressed rising above politics to sort out the financial issues confronting the country.

Addressing the 'Turn Around Pakistan' conference, he said economic self-reliance was the key to achieving the goals of development and prosperity.

The event organized by Ministry of Planning Development and Special Initiatives gathered stakeholders from all walks of life with an objective to finding solutions to the country's current socio-economic issues.

The prime minister said Pakistan was facing many external and internal challenges which were compounded by the existing commodity super- cycle and geo-political situation.

He said as the economic growth did not offer enough opportunities for national progress, short-term measures could act as a catalyst for speeding up the growth.

He said financial self-reliance was the top most priority of the coalition government.

He said focusing on the areas of agriculture, agro-based industry and exports was vital to strengthen the national economy.

He stressed the need for judicious utilization of the $2 billion tranche from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and pledged that every single penny would be spent prudently.

He also mentioned the support of China during the tough financial times and helping Pakistan in its journey towards economic stability.

PM Sharif said there was no dearth of talent and potential in Pakistan and emphasized setting the right direction to achieve the goals of prosperity.

He pointed out that several vital projects such as Reko Diq were abandoned in the past that damaged the development agenda of the country.

He said also, many power generation projects were stopped that resulted in shortage of electricity and impacted the industrial growth.

The prime minister expressed satisfaction that the conference engaged all the relevant stakeholders which could hold the development sector together from across the nation.

He said wider and inclusive consultations of experts belonging to diversified fields could be...