Over Half of Pakistan’s FY 2023-24 Budget Allocated to Debt Servicing: Report

According to a recent report , Pakistan is set to allocate a significant portion of its budget for the fiscal year 2023-24 towards debt servicing. The report states that approximately Rs. 7.302 trillion will be spent on servicing debt, which accounts for 50.5 percent of the total budget outlay of Rs. 14.460 trillion.

In the current fiscal year, the government had initially allocated Rs. 3.950 trillion for debt servicing, but it was later revised to Rs. 5.520 trillion. However, for the upcoming budget year, the government has increased the allocation significantly to Rs. 7.302 trillion.

When it comes to foreign debt servicing, Pakistan is expected to spend Rs. 872.219 billion in the fiscal year 2023-24. This amount is higher than the Rs. 510.972 billion allocated for the current fiscal year, which was later revised to Rs. 725.370 billion.

On the other hand, domestic debt servicing is projected to reach Rs. 6.430 trillion in the next budget year, compared to Rs. 3.439 trillion in the previous year (which was later revised to Rs. 4.795 trillion).

As of the end of March 2023, Pakistan’s total public debt stood at Rs. 59,247 billion. This figure indicates an increase of Rs. 10,005 billion during the first nine months of the current fiscal year.

The allocation of such a significant portion of the budget towards debt servicing highlights the financial challenges faced by Pakistan. Managing and reducing the country’s debt burden will be a crucial task for the government in the coming years.