KARACHI (Reuters) – Naureen Ahsan earns more than double the average wage in Pakistan, but school administrators are homeschooling her daughters and delaying final exams for London board certification. says there is no choice. education.
Like most of the country’s population of 220 million, Ahsan and her husband, who run car service businesses, were spurred by the government’s devaluation of the currency and the end of subsidies to make way for the latest tranches. I’m having a hard time coping with the skyrocketing cost of living. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout needed to stop the collapse of the economy.
Pakistan is experiencing an economic crisis, the fifth IMF bailout since 1997, but economists say the latest measures, including higher taxes and higher fuel costs, have hurt educated professionals. It has said. Many say they cut back on essentials to make ends meet.
“We don’t eat out anymore,” Ahsan told Reuters. “We don’t buy meat or fish anymore. We use less tissues and detergent. We don’t see our friends, we don’t give presents.
The government-mandated minimum wage is about 25,000 rupees, but inflation in February was 31.5%, the highest in nearly 50 years, and many people earning much more than that are paying less than their monthly salary. I say it won’t last.
Abhi Salary, one of Pakistan’s largest fintech companies, has enabled some 200,000 subscribers to withdraw their wages in advance, while transactions have increased by more than a fifth each month over the past three months. says there is. According to Abhi CEO Omair Ansari, most people spend two-thirds of his money on groceries as they rush to stock up before prices rise again.
“Unfortunately, Pakistan’s poor have nothing to lose,” said Abid Sureli of the Pakistan Institute for Sustainable Development Policy, an economic think tank. “Educated professionals find purchasing power and savings waning and daily consumption out of reach or out of reach.”
Ramadan, which began this week, is likely to add to price pressures in Muslim-majority Pakistan. Analysts expect inflation to rise to at least 35% over the month in his March and his April.
During the holy month, Muslims traditionally break the all-day fast, eat special foods, and culminate in the celebration of Eid al-Fitr with large family gatherings. This year, Ramadan means tightening your belts for many.
“We eat less and less,” said Ahmed, a senior executive at the multinational, who declined to give his last name out of fear of potential backlash from his employers. “It will be more difficult to buy Eid sweets and gifts that are separate from family traditions.”
Economic turmoil has forced some experts out of the country. Mr. Halik, a doctor who did not want to give his full name because he was embarrassed by his financial situation, said he and his wife are also doctors and are working as much as they can to save money for the exams to qualify. they work in the UK.
“We are hesitant about eating out and using a car,” he said, adding that the depreciation of the rupee is making their exam costs more expensive by the day. I plan to move out as soon as possible.”
($1 = 282.7200 Pakistani Rupees)
Reported by Ariba Shahid, written by Miral Fahmy.Editing by Jerry Doyle
Our criteria: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
