PM Shehbaz launches 'Buna-Raast' for easy remittances from Arab countries

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday launched the 'Buna-Raast' connectivity with the collaboration of the Arab Monetary Fund to streamline remittances.

Buna-Raast is connected with Pakistan’s digital payment platform 'Raast'.

Raast is a free-of-cost transaction platform in Pakistan through which users of any bank can transfer tax-free money through their own local bank’s application.

Addressing the launching ceremony, the premier expressed hope that the initiative will further strengthen Pakistan’s historic relations with the Arab world in a modern digital way.

The initiative aims to facilitate overseas Pakistanis living in Arab countries to send payments to their family quickly.

“It is Pakistan's first cross-border real-time payment system that will make remittances more affordable and accessible,” said PM Shehbaz.

Referring power sector as the second biggest challenge, the PM said that his team was mulling the home-grown economic programme, which would help the authorities in the agriculture, IT, and energy sectors.

Earlier, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb termed Buna-Raast connectivity a great initiative, saying "Pakistan’s macro-economic heading towards stability".

He informed the participants in the ceremony that Pakistan would attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) under the chairmanship of Premier Shehbaz.   

Welcoming the digitalisation in the finance sector, he said the policy rate was increasing rapidly, and it was attracting investors in the country.

“We are determined for structural reforms in the finance sector," he said, adding remittances are like life for any country, and "we received $3 billion in remittances in July".