After every budget I know it will become even more difficult to make ends meet on my income......
With the recent price hike after the annual budget 2019, it has become extremely difficult for women to run their households within their limited income.You! takes a look...
After every budget I know it will become even more difficult to make ends meet on my income,” tells Sana who works at a factory. “I will have to change my priorities when it comes to buying now.” The rise in prices and taxes, the inflation and devaluing of the rupee directly affects the woman running the house. She is unable to deal with the expenses to support her family on the shrinking purchasing power of a fixed budget.
The National Budget 2019-20 was announced recently and it hasn’t been received too well. The debate continues between the government and opposition - one side claiming the budget as the best ever and the other side saying that it is the worst ever - while the real victims of the budget go unnoticed and are left to fend for themselves to meet the price changes. In an economy likes ours, there are bound to be many holes that need to be plugged, but it is not fair that the masses bear the brunt of the follies of the government.
Unfortunately, the gap between the rich and poor is widening. Estimates before the budget revealed that about 39 per cent of Pakistan’s population live in poverty, with about a third of the population below the poverty line. And this number may increase after the budget.
According to the government, the economy will get better in the long-term and we will reap gains; and many economists agree with this too. While this is good news, the future might be a little too late for the people who need change right now and be able to survive to see the gains. They have to provide basic necessities to their families but with prices and inflation on the rise, this seems to be difficult.
Before the axe of tax and high prices fell on the consumers in June, they saw a curtain raiser in the form of the mini budget in January 2019. This mini budget heralded what lay ahead for the consumer as prices of vegetables and other items went up immediately. Prices of vegetables like potato and onions went up; milk and dairy products became expensive and fruits became a luxury for the majority of the population. Sadly, the National Budget only added to all this. The prices rose immediately following the presentation of the budget. Cooking oil, ghee and drinks with sugar saw an increase of 17 per cent duty. Sugar that was available for Rs 55 has increased to Rs 60 within a week. The price of sugar also increased in the wholesale market as it was raised Rs 3-4 per kg. The 17 per cent increase on cooking oil and ghee is being felt in every home, as these are integral ingredients to cook most meals.
The budget ‘suggested’ a 10 per cent tax on milk, cream and powdered milk - which means that thousands of people will take these items off their shopping list and thousands will be deprived of the nutritional benefits of important things like milk and cream. And speaking of a healthy diet, people will soon have to strike out other important things from their meals like meat. There is 17 per cent increase on semi-processed and cooked meat on the already expensive chicken, mutton and fish.
“My money can’t buy the necessities of life,” laments Rasheeda, who works as a house cleaner in several houses to support her family. “I can’t send my children to school, I can’t afford healthcare for my family and I can’t put proper food on the table. With prices rising we cannot even afford proper food and I will have to add another house so I can still afford the basic things.”
Rasheeda is part of the large portion of the population that has always felt the pressure of the rising prices. And one of the repercussions of inflation is that basic necessities are ticked off from the list, the first ones being education and healthcare. As Rasheeda says their first priority is food, healthcare and education are luxuries the poor cannot afford.
As if that was not enough pressure on the masses, the dollar keeps rising and the rupee declining. The dollar stands at 157 PKR right now and this figure is likely to increase. Most Pakistanis always see their home budgets in light of the rise and fall of dollar. They may not be economic experts but all they know is that when the dollar rate will increase, it will cause them to cut down their budgets as their purchasing power will decrease. Moreover, those who get salary increments and bonuses are not happy either, as the extra amount goes into cover the increase in the prices. Therefore, instead of bettering their lifestyles, the extra money helps to try to keep them within the previous expenses.
It’s also tough for those who moved back to Pakistan after living a comparatively comfortable life abroad. “I didn’t think it was going to be like this but life has become so difficult in Pakistan,” decries Rahat who recently returned to Pakistan after several years and now finds it difficult to cover the basics without going over her budget. “Everything is so expensive. You need a lot of money to live here. Even basics like food, health and education are so expensive. I don’t know how people do it. You don’t get your money’s worth. One cannot save anything after paying the bills and other important expenses. Even for healthcare, I pay a lot more when I am not even satisfied with the service.”
Another expat couple have a similar story. Khadija and her husband Fahim moved back after their children moved out to live their lives. They had enough savings and their children send them enough money to live comfortably in Pakistan. Despite this, they realised very soon that it was tough maintaining a certain kind of lifestyle. “We wanted to return home to live out the rest of our lives in our own country and we believed that we had enough money to live lavishly. But after a year, things don’t look so rosy anymore,” shares Fahim. “Everything is expensive and prices of basic things like food keep rising without any check. The prices during Ramazan were the worst. Everything just kept going up. It would have been all right if you were getting what you paid for. But it hurts to spend more money on something that is not worth it. Healthcare is expensive and mostly not up to the standard. The education is in shambles. The system is barely moving. I expected things to be bad but wasn’t really aware of this state of affairs,” he adds.
“We didn’t feel this when we visited twice a year as ‘tourists’. We spent the surplus money that we had since we were earning in a stronger currency. Now when we are living here, reality is a shocker. And surprisingly the fruits and vegetables grown in the country itself are so pricey. I understand that the best stuff is exported - that should be a plus point for our agrarian economy - but we don’t see any improvement even in those sectors,” says Khadija.
Unlike the locals, these people have an option of returning to their adopted countries. However, the rest of the people have to face the issues that every budget brings. The pressure is on everywhere. Every vendor, from the vegetable seller to the grocery store owner to malls, keeps adding more digits to the price citing the increase in the price of fuel (and the dollar). The result of this is that the consumer has to give more for less, which is an extremely frustrating situation.
The people of Pakistan never expect much relief from budgets presented by any government. They are clear that the budget means financial crisis for them and unfortunately they are used to it. People see a bleak future as the government’s promises begin to wane. With predictions of unemployment, bad public services and more price hikes as the rupee devalues, life in Pakistan is becoming tough for the masses. And with no chance of improvement in the near future, Pakistan may once again see a major brain drain as younger people will try to escape to better places.
Before the budget is made and money allocated, the government should carry out public surveys and debates months before it’s presented to be aptly familiar with the issues. Experts should device economic dynamics to form some kind of formula that benefits the people while the government carries on trying to get the economy back on track. Unfortunately, no such schemes are introduced to help improve the lives of the masses and keep more people above the poverty line. People, especially women, who run homes and have to make a domestic budget, are finding it hard to put good food on the table.
Right now, the budget looks good but only on paper - all the figures neat and balanced, at least to the government. However, these figures do not translate very well in the real world. Hope the government has a plan B to improve the situation sooner than later for the sake of the population.
