Business Desk 
Jun 05, 2025
Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif chairs a meeting of the National Economic Council in Islamabad on Wednesday. —APP
A meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, approved the Annual Development Plan for budget 2025 26.
On Wednesday, June 4, 2025, the council approved a national development budget of Rs4,224 billion for 2025–2026, with Rs1,000 billion allocated for the federal and Rs2,869 billion for the provincial development expenditures.
Moreover, the meeting approved a GDP growth rate of 2.7% for 2024–2025 and a target of 4.2% for the next fiscal year.
The National Economic Council directed relevant ministries, provinces, and government institutions to work closely with the Ministry of Planning to achieve the targets set in the proposed budget 2026 Pakistan.
Federal budget 2025 26
It is worth noting that priority sectors in these development projects would include health, education, infrastructure, the water sector, and housing.
The meeting approved the 13th Five-Year Plan (2024–2029), according to the approval of the “Uraan Pakistan Framework.”
During the meeting, the prime minister congratulated the participants of the meeting on Pakistan’s historic victory in Marka e Haq on May 10.
“By the grace of Allah Almighty, Pakistan achieved victory in Marka e Haq due to the professional competence and bravery of the Pakistan armed forces,” he added.
He noted that the recent economic stability in the country was made possible due to joint efforts of the federal and provincial governments, adding “The country is now on the path to economic growth.”
During the meeting, it was noted that a total of Rs3,483 billion is being spent on the Annual National Development Program for 2024–2025, including Rs1,100 billion for the federal government and Rs2,383 billion for the provinces.
Due to government policies and measures, the policy rate gradually declined to 11%, and loans issued to the private sector from July 2024 to May 2025 hiked to Rs681 billion, the briefing highlighted.
The GDP for 2024–2025 of Pakistan is projected at Rs114 trillion or $411 billion.
Notably, the meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, as well as Chief Ministers of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and other members of the National Economic Council.
