WB Country Director Meets FBR Chairman, Discusses Transformation Plan

World Bank (WB) Country Director Najy Benhassine on Thursday met Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Rashid Mahmood Langrial and discussed the FBR Transformation Plan. Najy Benhassine was accompanied by Tobias Akhtar Haque (Lead Country Economist), Lucy Pan (Senior Economist), and Irum Touqeer (Public Sector Specialist). The FBR Chairman briefed about the vision of the Government for the transformation of FBR and the Transformation Plan approved by the Prime Minister. A detailed overview of the FBR Transformation Plan and major reforms was given which also focused on aligning initiatives under Pakistan Raises Revenue Project. The Chairman FBR informed that the purpose of reforms was to maximize revenue growth while facilitating compliance. He highlighted the key reform areas to plug the gap in tax compliance including tax policy reforms, digitalization initiatives, capacity building of HR, anti-smuggling initiatives, and broad-based tax administration reforms. The Country Director expressed support for the initiatives under the FBR Transformation Plan and reiterated the World Bank’s commitment to continue supporting the revenue mobilization efforts in Pakistan.