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Pakistan could become the world’s sixth-largest economy before 2050, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Friday, even as the country grapples with heavy debt and waits for the IMF to approve about US$1.2 billion in fresh funding.
Speaking at the Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum in Islamabad, Sharif cited a 2022 Goldman Sachs projection that put Pakistan sixth by 2075. “I would like to make a small amendment here,” he said, according to Dawn, adding that he expected Pakistan to reach that rank before 2050.
Pakistan reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF in October. If the fund’s executive board approves it, the new funding would bring total disbursements under the two programmes to about US$5.7 billion, the IMF said.
SHARIF’S BET ON COPPER AND GOLD
At the forum, Sharif urged investors to build smelters, refineries and factories that could turn locally mined ore into products such as cables and electrical conductors. His pitch was to “mine in Pakistan, process in Pakistan, manufacture in Pakistan and then export to the rest of the world," Radio Pakistan reported.
He pointed to Reko Diq in Balochistan, one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold deposits. Sharif said the project had been stalled for about two decades and announced 2028 as the expected start of production.
Barrick Mining has slowed work at Reko Diq over security concerns and warned that the project could take longer and cost more than previously estimated. The company’s review is set to continue until mid-2027.
Sharif promised faster approvals and said federal and provincial authorities would work together to protect workers, mining sites and supply routes. He said investors would need reliable power and water and that mining companies would need to earn the trust of local communities.
WHAT GOLDMAN SACHS PROJECTED
The 2022 study covered 104 economies. It projected that China, India, the United States, Indonesia and Nigeria would make up the top five by 2075, followed by Pakistan.
Under such a scenario, Pakistan’s real GDP would reach US$12.7 trillion, with the GDP per capita at US$27,100.
Population growth helped put Pakistan high on the list. The bank’s economists said the country could rank among the world’s largest economies with the “appropriate policies and institutions” in place.
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