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Global Go To Think Tank Index (GGTTI) 2020 launched                    111,75 Think Tanks across the world ranked in different categories.                SDPI is ranked 90th among “Top Think Tanks Worldwide (non-US)”.           SDPI stands 11th among Top Think Tanks in South & South East Asia & the Pacific (excluding India).            SDPI notches 33rd position in “Best New Idea or Paradigm Developed by A Think Tank” category.                SDPI remains 42nd in “Best Quality Assurance and Integrity Policies and Procedure” category.              SDPI stands 49th in “Think Tank to Watch in 2020”.            SDPI gets 52nd position among “Best Independent Think Tanks”.                           SDPI becomes 63rd in “Best Advocacy Campaign” category.                   SDPI secures 60th position in “Best Institutional Collaboration Involving Two or More Think Tanks” category.                       SDPI obtains 64th position in “Best Use of Media (Print & Electronic)” category.               SDPI gains 66th position in “Top Environment Policy Tink Tanks” category.                SDPI achieves 76th position in “Think Tanks With Best External Relations/Public Engagement Program” category.                    SDPI notches 99th position in “Top Social Policy Think Tanks”.            SDPI wins 140th position among “Top Domestic Economic Policy Think Tanks”.               SDPI is placed among special non-ranked category of Think Tanks – “Best Policy and Institutional Response to COVID-19”.                                            Owing to COVID-19 outbreak, SDPI staff is working from home from 9am to 5pm five days a week. All our staff members are available on phone, email and/or any other digital/electronic modes of communication during our usual official hours. You can also find all our work related to COVID-19 in orange entries in our publications section below.    The Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) is pleased to announce its Twenty-third Sustainable Development Conference (SDC) from 14 – 17 December 2020 in Islamabad, Pakistan. The overarching theme of this year’s Conference is Sustainable Development in the Times of COVID-19. Read more…       FOOD SECIRITY DASHBOARD: On 4th Nov, SDPI has shared the first prototype of Food Security Dashboard with Dr Moeed Yousaf, the Special Assistant to Prime Minister on  National Security and Economic Outreach in the presence of stakeholders, including Ministry of National Food Security and Research. Provincial and district authorities attended the event in person or through zoom. The dashboard will help the government monitor and regulate the supply chain of essential food commodities.

Staff Reporter

Dawn

Published Date: Jun 25, 2019

Steps taken to go after tax evaders with Nadra’s help: ministry official

ISLAMABAD: Adviser, Ministry of Finance, Dr Khaqan Najeeb on Monday outlined the measures taken by the government to go after tax evaders with the help of Nadra.
Addressing a public seminar titled ‘SDPI Post-Budget (2019-20) Analysis’ organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), Dr Khaqan, who is also the official spokesperson, said the Benami Law 2017 was now effective in the country and it will be implemented from July 1.
“The government has details of 152,000 expats’ foreign assets data and bank accounts, 14,000 unregistered cars and data of transactions of domestic accounts,” Dr Najeeb said, adding that “now the time has come to go after tax evaders and the category of non-filer is being abolished.”
He also added that the expense on the civil and defence side needed to be controlled.
Dr Najeeb said Pakistan’s 11pc tax-to-GDP ratio is not sustainable and ambitious tax revenue target of Rs5,555 billion shows the direction of the budget, which indicates the government’s objective to enhance its revenue collection through austerity measures and direct taxation.
At the same time, he added that the budget 2019-20 was highly subsidised, where Ahsas programme was raised to Rs193 billion from around Rs120 billion and electricity subsidy from Rs168 billion to Rs217 billion. There has been allocation for Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme and Kamyab Jawan Programme to help protect the low strata of the society, he added.
Analysing the budget, SDPI Executive Director Dr Abid Qaiyum Suleri said the first federal budget of PTI was more or less the same as previous five budgets under the IMF programme.
“However, this time the federal government, after paying the provincial share under the National Finance Commission Award (NFC), would be left with only Rs3,462 billion which will be spent on paying debt payments,” he said.
“But all the expenditure under the Public Sector Development Programme, defence expenditure and day-to-day expenses need to be financed by borrowing from external sources,” he added.
Dr Suleri emphasised the need for synchronising Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) data with the help of technology as determining factor to help reach tax evaders to achieve the ambitious target of Rs5,555 billion revenue collection.
He said the government should make the asset declaration scheme successful to get rid of indirect taxes, and meet the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) conditions. Besides the government should evolve a regulatory mechanism to document gold and real-estate market where a substantial amount of assets and money is parked, he added.
PML-N MNA Romina Khurshid Alam said the economy should not be politicised as the country could not run successfully without a strong economy, adding that there was no authority and regulatory mechanism in place to keep a check on such inflations.
 
Source: https://www.dawn.com/news/1490204/steps-taken-to-go-after-tax-evaders-with-nadras-help-ministry-official 
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