Shehbaz analyzes pressures on fuel prices, orders salary cuts, vehicle restrictions and spending restrictions across institutions.
Prime Minister Shehbaz chairs a meeting on austerity measures. PHOTO: SCREEN CAPTURE
Funds saved through the government’s austerity measures will be used to provide relief to the public in the current circumstances, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Saturday.
The announcement came after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad to review the impact of the regional situation on prices of petroleum products and implementation of government cost-saving measures.
Last week, Prime Minister Sharif unveiled several austerity and energy conservation measures to prevent fuel shortages and declared that he would not raise prices of petroleum products further after a massive hike of Rs 55 per liter, seeking to appease a nervous public while shouldering the cost of rising prices.
The measures announced by the prime minister in a nationally televised, pre-recorded speech were aimed at saving fuel and raising funds to partially offset any further increases in diesel and petrol prices. The remaining shortfall is expected to be met from the Finance Ministry’s Rs 390 billion contingency fund.
The meeting discussed policy measures aimed at maintaining the stability of oil prices, as well as the progress of austerity measures and their potential impact.
According to the statement, all savings generated thanks to the government’s austerity campaign will go towards public aid.
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As part of the measures, salaries of employees of state-owned enterprises and autonomous institutions operating under government patronage will be reduced in stages from 5% to 30%, similar to the reductions already applied to government employees.
The meeting also decided that government representatives serving on the boards of corporations and other institutions would not receive fees from board meetings, which would instead be added to the savings fund.
The prime minister directed Pakistani embassies across the world to observe national day celebrations on March 23 with simplicity.
According to the PMO statement, officials said the four-day workweek policy would not apply to law enforcement agencies and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), which will continue to follow their existing work schedules.
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The meeting also reviewed a decision to cut fuel allowances for government vehicles by 50% over the next two months and ground 60% of official vehicles, the implementation of which will undergo a third-party audit.
Participants were also informed about the complete ban on the purchase of new government vehicles and restrictions on other official purchases.
Over the next two months, the salaries of cabinet members, ministers, advisers and special assistants will also be redirected as public welfare savings.
The ban on foreign visits by ministers, advisers, special assistants and government officials will remain in place, and priority will be given to teleconferences and online meetings.
The prime minister directed relevant secretaries to ensure implementation and monitoring of all austerity measures and to submit daily reports to a review committee.
The meeting was attended by federal ministers Attaullah Tarar, Muhammad Aurangzeb and Ali Pervaiz Malik, state minister Bilal Azhar Kayani, chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue and other senior officials.
