By Uzma Ehtasham
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has announced a wide-ranging relief package for exporters, cutting the export refinancing rate from 7.5% to 4.5%, reducing electricity tariffs by a further Rs4.04 per unit, lowering wheeling charges by Rs9, and offering blue passport facilities for two years to high-performing exporters. Speaking at a ceremony held in honor of leading exporters and business figures, the prime minister credited exporters’ “untiring efforts” for bringing billions of dollars into the country and said Pakistan’s economy was now moving from stabilization towards sustainable growth. He claimed that, after what he described as a decisive national moment, Pakistan’s standing in the world had improved to the extent that countries once indifferent were now eager to engage.
Political and military leadership, he said, were working in unison for national development, and with continued effort the economy could be transformed within a few years. Shehbaz Sharif also made an unusually candid admission, saying that without the support of the army chief and chief of defence staff, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, many of the government’s challenges could not have been resolved. This alignment, he argued, was essential for economic recovery and national strength, adding that a united front would leave India unsettled by the emergence of a stronger Pakistan. He recalled that only recently the country had been widely described as being on the brink of default, averted, he said, through difficult negotiations with the IMF and a renewed commitment to honor agreements that had previously been broken.
Inflation, he claimed, was easing, the policy rate had fallen from 22% to 10.5%, and foreign exchange reserves had doubled. Business leaders at the event welcomed the package, calling it timely and saying it had injected rare confidence into the export community. The announcement has come at a moment when the economy has been under severe strain, industry weakened and exports stagnant. In that context, the relief package offers not just temporary comfort to manufacturers but an implicit recognition of a long-ignored truth: without lowering production costs, Pakistan cannot compete in global markets. The prime minister’s public acknowledgment of the military leadership’s role is equally significant. It reflects the reality of Pakistan’s current hybrid governance model, in which civil-military coordination, mutual trust and a shared national agenda form the backbone of decision-making.
History offers a stark lesson. Periods of confrontation between civilian and military institutions have invariably damaged Pakistan’s economy, internal stability and foreign policy. Conversely, moments of alignment have tended to deliver gains not only in security but also on the economic front. In the present climate, marked by internal fragility and external pressure, such coordination appears less a choice than a necessity. The prime minister’s assertion that a sustained civil-military partnership would alter regional power perceptions is, at its core, an argument about economics as much as defence. A strong economy underwrites a credible defence; a weak one erodes it. Cuts in electricity prices are particularly consequential.
For years, exorbitant energy costs have crippled Pakistani industry, with exporters in textiles, engineering, pharmaceuticals and sports goods repeatedly warning that they cannot compete with rivals in Bangladesh, Vietnam or India. If the government follows through consistently, the measures could help revive exports, generate employment and rebuild foreign exchange buffers. The reduction in export refinancing rates to 4.5% is equally significant, as affordable capital is essential for exporters to invest in technology, meet quality standards and ensure timely deliveries. Likewise, lower wheeling charges could help accelerate industrial activity, provided the relief is structural rather than short-lived.
The warm response from business representatives suggests that trust between the government and the private sector is beginning to recover. Yet a larger question remains unresolved: will this relief reach ordinary citizens? If factories resume production while households continue to struggle under the weight of high electricity bills, fuel costs and food prices, the benefits of recovery will remain narrowly concentrated. Concerns over the IMF program are not misplaced either. Past experience shows that such agreements often bring harsh conditionalities, higher taxes and energy price hikes. The government’s real test will be whether it can balance international commitments with domestic welfare.
There is little doubt that civil-military alignment has contributed to improved security and macroeconomic stability. The challenge now is to translate that cohesion into tangible relief for the public. Poverty, inflation, unemployment and soaring utility bills remain the defining anxieties of everyday life. If the current system can meaningfully ease these pressures, public confidence in the state will strengthen and the space for destabilizing narratives will shrink. Pakistan stands at a fragile but decisive juncture. Shifting global politics, regional tensions and internal economic stress are converging. In such circumstances, national unity, policy continuity and institutional harmony are indispensable.
(The writer is a public health professional, journalist, and possesses expertise in health communication, having keen interest in national and international affairs, can be reached at uzma@metro-morning.com)
