ISLAMABAD, June 3: The standard of living of Pakistanis has significantly improved during the current fiscal year, claims the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement (PSLM) survey. The survey will be partially released here on Saturday as part of the Pakistan Economic Survey 2004-05. Details would be available by October- November 2005, after the conclusion of full consumption cycle of the fiscal year.

Adviser to the prime minister on finance and revenue Dr Salman Shah and economic adviser Dr Ashfaq Hassan Khan would launch the Pakistan Economic Survey 2004-05, which projects current year’s GDP growth at 8.4 per cent, significantly higher than a target of 6.6 per cent.

The PSLM is based on a survey of 77,000 households from across the country and covers the period since June 2004. It has been designed on the pattern of World Bank-sponsored Core Welfare Indicator Questionnaire (CWIQ) and deals with 8-9 areas like health, education, electricity consumption, housing, living conditions, demographic conditions, gas consumption, income-expenditure and use of tap water for drinking etc.

Dr Ashfaq Hassan told Dawn that on the advice of the World Bank, the PSLM would be conducted on an every alternate year basis. He said almost all the indicators have shown improvement since 2000-01.

The adviser said some of the indicators of the PSLM had been made part of poverty related chapter of the Economic Survey while the remaining survey would be released separately by the FBS after the budget 2005-06.

He said the government had included results of a brief sample survey on poverty situation last year in the economic survey, but was criticised for its duration and coverage. This year result of a comprehensive survey spread over a full financial year would be available, he said.

Salient features of the Economic Survey suggest that agriculture sector has shown a growth of 7.5 per cent supported by a bumper cotton and wheat crops in 2004-05, while large scale manufacturing grew by 15.4 per cent and services sector by 7.9 per cent.

The current year’s budget has set a target of four per cent growth in agriculture sector, 10.2 per cent in manufacturing sector and 6.2 per cent in services sector.

Wheat production has improved to 20.2 million tons against a target of 20.8 million tons while cotton production has stood at 14.6 million bales against a target of 10.72 million bales.

However, rice production has remained short of target by 2.4 per cent and stood at 4.99 million tons against a target of 5.11 million tons. Sugarcane production has been estimated at 45.32 million tons against a target of 50.87 million tons, showing a shortfall of 10.9 per cent.

In the services sector, growth of 7.9 per cent, a major contribution has come in the shape of 22 per cent increase in finance and insurance, 12 per cent in wholesale and retail trade, 5.6 per cent in transport, storage and communications and 3.5 per cent in the ownership of dwellings.

The trade gap during first 10 months of the current year has increased to $4.842 billion against a full year target of $3 billion.