ISLAMABAD, Aug 5: President General Pervez Musharraf on Friday appreciated decline brought about in Pakistan’s debt burden in the last six years and underscored the need for having a borrowing strategy which is need-based and its positive effects are seen on the ground.

He was addressing a meeting on debt reduction strategy, which was also attended by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. Commending the performance of Pakistan’s economic team for bringing about economic growth and stability in the country, the president stated that it took six years of sustained efforts and sacrifices for the country’s economy “to reach the stage where it stands today”.

“But it takes no time to slide back,” he cautioned.

“This is the lesson we must remember - and there should be no complacency,” he said.

There is no doubt, he noted, that Pakistan’s debt burden has declined substantially and is fast approaching sustainable levels.

“We must continue to maintain macro-economic stability and continue to follow the path of structural reforms,” he said.

He also directed a review of the ongoing and under-process projects to see how they fitted into the context of the government’s reforms and development priorities.

“The purpose should be to effect a qualitative improvement in the lives of our people,” he said.

The president also stated that the country’s borrowing requirements should be reviewed on a quarterly basis.

“We must not lower our guard and continue to perform well,” he emphasized, underlining the importance of sustaining good performance.

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz briefed the president about the evolution of the country’s debt situation during the last six years when a point of stability was reached after starting out from insolvency.

He said significant progress had been made on debt reduction.

Mr Aziz said that despite significant progress on debt reduction “there is no complacency”.

He stressed the need for maintaining macro-economic stability and persisting with structural reforms in various sectors of the economy.

The prime minister said the government had already undertaken second-generation reforms and in order to maintain fiscal discipline, parliament had already passed fiscal responsibility and debt limitation law.

He termed it a major development on the country’s economic scene. —APP