The country’s population has crossed 240 million and the growth rate stands at 2.55 per cent, according to the 2023 national census, whose results were approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI) on Saturday. And as the government has reiterated that the general election, due to take place later this year will be held using the new census findings, it indicates polls could be delayed by s
Prominent industrialist Arif Habib expressed on Saturday his full support for the “hybrid system” of governance to keep politicians on the “right track”. Speaking at a seminar organised by the Habib Public School Alumni Association (HPSAA), the chairman of one of the largest Pakistani conglomerates with substantial stakes in over a dozen sectors of the economy said the military establishment sh
In 2015, Tameer Bank, a leading microfinance and the creator of Easypaisa, started getting feedback from its bottom-of-the-pyramid customer base that the 12 months equal monthly instalment loan was not enough. There was a demand for a short-term, small-ticket consumption loan with a fast turnaround. The credit underwriting criteria that Tameer Bank was using required extensive fieldwork to dete
Should we fear farm mechanisation and technical innovations? While there is widespread consensus that the use of machines is essential to increasing agricultural productivity, many people in Pakistan are concerned that it may reduce labour demand in the agriculture sector, rendering workers — especially unskilled ones — redundant, which may lead to higher unemployment in rural areas along with a w
The economy is projected to grow at two to three per cent, and the average inflation rate is expected to decline in the range of 20-22pc in FY24, from 29.2pc in FY23, according to the latest State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) monetary policy statement. And to quote SBP Governor Jamil Ahmed, economic uncertainty has decreased since the last Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting two months ago, whe