Terror war will now cost Pakistan $8bn: Daily Times

* Ministry of Finance estimates $34.5 billion losses to Pakistan since 2001

By Sajid Chaudhry

ISLAMABAD: The direct and indirect cost of the war on terror borne by Pakistan is likely to increase to $8 billion per annum in the next couple of years from the current $6 billion, an official source told Daily Times on Thursday.According to the official, estimates compiled by the Ministry of Finance indicate that during the eight years since 2001, direct and indirect losses to Pakistan’s economy due to the war on terror have been estimated at $34.5 billion.

According to the official, the loss of lives and economic cost imposed by the war is now rising to an unbearable level and a very negligible portion of these costs is defrayed by the government’s development partners.Since 2001, losses of $5 billion have been estimated in foreign direct investment, more than $5 billion in exports and $5.5 billion in privatisation, the official said.

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