Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday told officials to finish all parts of the government’s privatisation programme on time.
The Prime Minister was leading a meeting in Islamabad looking at the privatisation of state-owned companies. He told the departments and organisations to work together closely. He wanted them to make sure all targets and deadlines for the privatisation programme were achieved according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
The meeting had Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Ministers Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Jam Kamal Khan, Ahad Khan Cheema, Sardar Awais Khan Leghari and other top officials the PMO said.
Prime Minister Shehbaz said the privatisation plan for the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZBTL) should be made in a way that protects the bank’s job of helping with farming money.
He said it must be ensured that even after the bank is privatised the Zarai Taraqiati Bank’s job of giving farming loans and money to medium-sized farmers stays the same he was reported as saying in the statement.
The Prime Minister said that helping farmers get money was very important for making more food from each acre of land. This was especially true for medium-sized farmers. He added that farming growth was very important for Pakistan’s economy and for making sure there was food.
Officials from the privatisation ministry briefed the meeting on progress under the government’s privatisation programme and future targets. The meeting was told that 27 state-owned enterprises were included in the programme, which was being implemented in three phases.
According to the briefing, the financial closing process for the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and First Women Bank has been completed. Officials said the first financial closing and transfer of management control of PIA were completed on June 29.
The meeting also reviewed progress on the planned privatisation of Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco), Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) and Gujranwala Electric Power Company (Gepco).
Officials said expressions of interest (EOIs) had been advertised for these companies, with submission deadlines set for Aug 7 for Fesco, Aug 21 for Gepco and Sep 7 for Iesco.
The meeting was also told that international companies have expressed interest in these distribution companies, while roadshows with investors are also underway, according to the PMO.
Fesco, Gepco and Iesco collectively serve more than 14 million consumers across major industrial, commercial and urban centres of Punjab, the Islamabad region, and parts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The transaction offers investors an opportunity to acquire between 51 per cent and 100pc shareholding, along with management control, in each of the three distribution companies.
Officials also updated the prime minister on progress on the privatisation of ZTBL, stating that the transaction structure was being designed to protect the bank’s agricultural lending mandate.
The meeting further reviewed progress on the planned privatisation of Islamabad International Airport, Jinnah International Airport in Karachi and Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore.
The PM directed officials to maintain close oversight of all ongoing privatisation transactions and ensure their completion according to the agreed timelines.
The premier issued these instructions three days after Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s statement saying that the system had “collapsed”, and that things would not get fixed as long as “the present system is not reset”.
Presiding over a separate meeting on private investment, PM Shehbaz directed officials to prepare, at the earliest, a roadmap for establishing a private equity fund to promote investment, support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and encourage sustainable economic growth, according to his office.
He asked officials to submit a comprehensive plan for developing both Pakistan’s public equity market and a private equity fund to improve access to investment capital and help attract foreign investment.
“The promotion of private investment is essential for the country’s economic growth,” the premier said according to another statement issued by the PMO.
The Prime Minister said that private equity funds can really help with investment and creating jobs. He thinks that areas like mining and agriculture and energy and information technology can be very important for Pakistans economy to grow.
The Prime Minister Shehbaz said that if we have a stock market it can help people invest in these areas. He said that banks are not doing enough to help with investments so we need to find ways for people to get the money they need.
The Prime Minister said that the government is working hard to make the economy strong and this will happen with the help of equity funds and, by making things and selling them to other countries.
The Prime Minister had a meeting and people who were there included DPM Dar and Minister of State Bilal Azhar Kayani and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Haroon Akhtar and other important government people the PMO said.
