How Sharif and Munir’s foreign tours are burdening Pakistan’s fragile economy

Many things are not alright with Pakistan’s economy: the deepening foreign exchange crisis, prolonged border skirmishes with Afghanistan, rising oil prices and commodity shortages due to the West Asian crisis, and structural issues of rising poverty and unemployment.

The economic crisis is already being addressed by the massive credit flow of two IMF tranches, received as recently as December 2025; however, the economy is far from sustainable stabilisation, as evident by the recent run to Saudi Arabia for a loan to manage the forex shortage. 

In such scenarios, one would expect the country's leaders to work hard to address the crisis created by their fiscal indiscipline and strictly observe the austerity measures set by the multilateral banks. But the realities of Pakistan leaders can’t be further from this. 

Indeed, the leaders have proven their mettle in addressing the crisis: the mettle that lies in knocking on doors from time to time for newer loans. And surprisingly, the leaders sitting in Islamabad have been time and again successful in their endeavours. However, the “sitting” here in the above statement is only metaphorical, as in reality, they are often found on planes outbound from Pakistan. Since the accession to the second term in 2024, Shehbaaz Sharif has taken trips to 20 countries, with multiple visits to many countries, making a total of 40+international  trips in almost two years. The Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, who was promoted last year, has also been catching up with the PM in his tally of foreign trips. 

Though the trips have been made on account of seeking foreign financial help to address the ongoing economic crisis, as well as for security and strategic purposes, there also exists a deep-seated scepticism about the way the trips are conducted. Reports are claiming that foreign trips by the leadership are contributing to a significant level of expenses. As per the reports dated 2023, the extravagant government had spent nearly Rs. 64 million on tours abroad. This is despite the ironic fact that the PM urged people to avoid unnecessary travel to support austerity measures, while he doesn’t seem to be heeding his own advice. 

Though joking around as a “post-war honeymoon”, the netizens are also questioning the logic of joint appearances of the PM and the Army Chief on different diplomatic trips . Apart from calling the shots on the two, many are also raising grave concerns about the intentions of the Army Chief and their desire to run a puppet government or spread false victory propaganda, and about the repercussions of letting the Army Chief handle foreign policy . The netizens’ narrative calls out the trips as endeavours “to bring the army back into the good books of Pakistanis”, and also claims that “people are no more falling in their trap”, “puppet master”, among others. This online discourse points out the deep-seated suspicion in the Pakistani awaam against the leaders, while questioning the logic and economics of numerous trips. 

Whatever the proclaimed purpose of these frequent jet-setting trips may be, one can be conclusive about the fact that these trips are not leading to any reduction in the current economic strain being faced by the Pakistani awaam. The economy has been severely ailing for the last 5 years, with high inflation, massive external debt, BOP crisis, and excessive foreign aid dependency. And one avenue to address these issues is to cut down on wasteful expenditure in the garb of protocol-ridden, unnecessary, extensive, and frequent travels of the leaders. The trips, portrayed as diplomatic, in essence, are a door-knocking exercise to ask for financial assistance; they don’t come cheap, as the very act of door-knocking by the leaders is draining the government's coffers.

Thus, the first fiscal prudence should begin at home, with the leaders cutting down their expenses as a model to be displayed to the larger audience. Besides, most of the diplomatic trips, like those in Tehran, to facilitate the peace talks are desperate attempts to establish themselves as the leader in the region and the deft executer of international diplomacy, despite the extensive tensions being faced with neighbouring Afghanistan, and within-country terrorism. Spending money on international peace and stability, while fighting multiple battles within and across borders, makes less of economic and political sense to the masses.

However, the leaders of Pakistan are convinced otherwise. The pompous display of the government’s diplomatic prowess, which might help them get very quick loans at the last minute, isn’t sustainable in the long haul. If the leaders have a plan to stick to the austerity measures, avoid wasteful expenditure, and focus internally to solve the structural issues and bring reforms, the economy is going to be all noise and no substance.