DAWN Editorials - 16th May 2025

[zarnishhayat]

Business of begging

IT is a matter of deep embarrassment that Pakistan has become an ‘exporter’ of beggars. Over 5,000 have been deported from Saudi Arabia alone in the last 16 months, while others have been booted out of Iraq, the UAE, Qatar and Malaysia. These and other numbers were shared recently by the interior minister while responding to a question in parliament. He disclosed that nearly 52pc of these deportees hail from Sindh, followed by Punjab and KP. With foreign governments tightening their visa regimes and publicly shaming us by deporting such large numbers, one must ask: what is our own government doing to tackle this crisis at home? While placing over 4,000 beggars on the Exit Control List may appear as decisive action, it addresses only the symptom, not the cause. The reality is that the ‘begging mafia’ thrives not only due to governance failures but also entrenched poverty and the state’s inability to generate viable employment. With millions of beggars across the country reportedly pulling in billions per year, this is not just a social ill, it is a well-oiled economy.

We must break this cycle. To begin with, a crackdown is needed on trafficking networks. If the ‘illegal’ Afghans were rounded up with such vigour, so can such trafficking rings. In addition, the government must rehabilitate those forced into begging through skill development, microfinance initiatives, and targeted social welfare programmes. It would also do well to establish vocational centres in Karachi, interior Sindh and south Punjab, where organised begging is most pronounced. The authorities must impose strict penalties on those who exploit the vulnerable for profit. Provincial governments must play their part by strengthening child protection units and launching sustained anti-begging awareness campaigns at the community level. The public should also realise that their charitable spirit is being exploited by criminals. This disgraceful ‘business’ must end.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2025


A ‘new’ Syria

THE American embrace of the post-Assad Syrian regime is complete, with President Donald Trump meeting the Arab state’s interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Riyadh on Wednesday, and announcing that US sanctions against Syria will be lifted. It should be remembered that not too long ago, there was a $10m US bounty on Mr Sharaa’s head, when he was more popularly known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, the feared head of the Al Qaeda-linked Al Nusra Front. But in geopolitics there are ‘good’ militants and ‘bad’ militants, and to the Americans, the Syrian leader clearly falls in the former category. Mr Sharaa was instrumental in overthrowing Bashar al-Assad’s brutal regime, which had long been a shared goal of the Americans, many states in Europe, as well as the Gulf Arabs. This effectively reversed the tide of Iranian and Russian influence in Syria. Therefore, the audience with Mr Trump, and the removal of sanctions, is a reward for the ex-militant’s ‘services’. Contrast this with the treatment meted out to the Afghan Taliban. The hard-line rulers of Kabul remain sanctioned by the US, and unrecognised by the global community. The Taliban are ideologically of similar stock as Ahmed al-Sharaa; but while the latter helped the US and West bring down a geopolitical foe, the former forced the US-led coalition to quit Afghanistan after a futile two-decade nation-building mission.

Mr Trump also asked the Syrian ruler to recognise Israel. However, there was no word of Israel vacating Syrian territory it has occupied for decades, including the Golan Heights, and more land it seized after the Assad government fell. It is indeed positive for sanctions to be lifted, and it is hoped that this helps bring relief to the Syrian people. But the selective rebranding and ‘dry-cleaning’ of those once labelled as terrorists by the West reeks of hypocrisy and self-interest. While Mr Sharaa has promised an inclusive state, he himself remains surrounded by extremist elements. Over the past few months, there have been bloody confrontations between pro-government fighters, and members of the Alawi and Druze communities. It would be a shame for the Syrian people if the Assad autocracy were to be replaced by an extremist state. Right now there are few signs that Damascus is on the path of inclusivity and progress, regardless of the newfound confidence the US has in Syria’s current rulers.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2025


Budgeting austerity

THE initial discussions between the IMF and Pakistan on the upcoming budget suggest that the multilateral agency is not going to relent on the core condition of its current $7bn financing facility: a tight fiscal policy. That was not unexpected. With the country living off repeated bailouts from the lender, it is but natural that its economic policies are tightly tied to the programme goal aimed at ensuring debt reduction and sustainability — in times of war and peace both.

Starting Wednesday, the virtual technical-level discussions, which precede formal policy-level talks on the budget from May 19, have revealed tentative fiscal, inflation, growth and other targets that our policymakers will be required to meet next year to stay in the programme.

Media reports say that the Fund expects Pakistan’s moribund economy to expand by 3.6pc next year, with headline consumer inflation averaging at 7.7pc, and total federal and provincial tax and non-tax revenues growing to nearly Rs20tr or 15.2pc of the economy’s size.

The IMF proposals also emphasise austerity by tightening controls on current and development expenditure to reduce the budget deficit from 5.6pc of the economy’s size estimated for the present fiscal year to 5.1pc next year.


Related to this is the hefty increase suggested in primary surplus from 1pc to 1.6pc of GDP in order to ensure sustainable debt servicing and bring down the debt-to-GDP ratio from 77.6pc to 75.6pc in FY26. The next budget will also map climate relevance in adaptation, mitigation and transition to receive the IMF’s climate-related funding of $1.4bn in the next 28 months.

Data for the current fiscal year shows that Pakistan is on track to meeting budget targets and other time-bound structural benchmarks agreed with the Fund. Cooperation from the provinces has proved critical in pulling off many of these goals. However, a significant increase in the revenue target proposed for next year amid a shortfall in tax revenues this year underlines the need for broadening the tax base by effectively bringing retail, real estate, agriculture and other undertaxed or untaxed areas of the economy into the net. This demands political commitment and substantial efforts by both the federal and provincial governments.

The decision to pull the government out of the wheat market this year despite opposition from the rural elite, and to cut energy subsidies for powerful textile and other manufacturers, shows that the state has what it takes to make tough decisions. The past policy of squeezing the salaried classes and fully documented corporations to collect taxes will not work any longer. Failure to reform the corrupt and inefficient tax system has already taken a huge toll on ordinary people and led to large cuts in spending on the development of infrastructure crucial for future economic growth and stability.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2025