Islamabad:
Pakistan formally approved the purchase of 1.1% of the actions of the Development Bank of the new new Ontar will Financial System.
The Cabinet Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) approved the purchase of NDB shares, established by five nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
The ECC also approved to transfer the actions of Power Distribution Companies (Disco) on behalf of the president of Pakistan to prepare these entities for privatization.
The Federal Minister of Finance, Muhammad Aurengzeb, presided over the ECC meeting.
The ECC approved the Pakistan membership in the NDB, established by the BRICS member countries, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Finance after the meeting.
He added that the ECC “supported the purchase of 5,882 capital shares in the NDB, worth $ 582 million, with USD 116 million as a paid capital.”
The 5,882 shares are equal to 1.09% of the bank’s total participation. Pakistan in May last year had shown interest to join the NDB.
The Government made the decision to join the New Bank as part of its plans to reduce the dependence of the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which grants loans with attached political chains, according to the Pakistani authorities.
BRICS is promoting an alternative financial architecture, with the NDB and the contingent reserve agreement. The NDB has approved almost 100 projects worth $ 33 billion during the last nine years.
The NDB membership is open to all the members of the United Nations with such terms and conditions that are determined by a special majority of the Board of Governors.
The special majority are defined as an affirmative vote of four concurrent founding members with an affirmative vote of two thirds of the bank’s total vote power.
The rivalry of Pakistan-India cannot deny Islamabad the membership of the NDB, since it plans to win the support of the other four members, government sources said.
Russia recently informed Pakistan that his name has been added to the list of possible NDB members during the annual meeting of the Board of Governors of Johannesburg in 2024 and Pakistan is eligible to have a subscription of 5,882 capital shares of the bank.
Transfer of Drown Property
The Ministry of Finance said that the ECC also approved to transfer the actions of energy distribution companies in the name of Pakistan’s president.
The committee approved the transfer with the observation that the approval is subject to confirmation that the transfer will not have financial implications, he added.
The Government remains in the children’s stage to privatize the three discos: the Faisalabad electric supply company (FESCO), the Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO) and the Electric Supplies Company of Islamabad (IESCO).
At the time of establishing discos, it had been decided that the actions of these companies will be transferred from Wapda to the name of Pakistan’s president, after the approval of the Pakistan government.
Until now, only Islamabad Energy Distribution Companies, Lahore and F fine have partially completed the process of issuing the actions in the name of Wapda. But Wapda subsequently did not transfer these actions on behalf of the president of Pakistan.
The World Bank has identified 13 necessary steps before any disco can be sold, including the transfer of the property in the name of the president of Pakistan.
Other decisions
The ECC also approved the incorporation of an international joint commercial company in Singapore for the state oil of Pakistan (PSO) and the State Petroleum Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). The Committee instructed the Ministry of Petroleum to guarantee due diligence with respect to specific investment approvals, particularly capital injections, as well as the schedule for the operationalization of the company.
The ECC approved RS27 billion complementary subsidies for several projects, including RS84 million for the acquisition of five transport vehicles for the President’s Secretariat. RS19.2 billion approved under the Finance Division for 133 schemes of the late Public Works Department of Pakistan. The funds will now be transferred to the respective ministries, divisions and provincial governments.
The Government had decided to close the Pakistan Public Works Department and transfer its projects and funds to other ministries, divisions and provincial governments.
The ECC also approved RS5.4 billion funds for discretionary spending on the schemes of parliamentarians in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). The province of Sindh will obtain RS4.3 billion and the remaining RS1.1 billion will be delivered to the KP parliamentarians.
The ECC approved RS1.9 billion in favor of NADRA for the old Fata project, ensuring the transition of 43 Citizen Facilitation Centers (CFC) in the KP. The allocation has been delivered by the Division of Economic Affairs and registered under the division of the interior without an additional financial burden for the Government, the Ministry of Finance said.
RS5 billion approved for the Ministry of National Health Services for the acquisition of medicines and vaccines to save lives. The ECC ordered the Ministry of Health to devise a structural solution for the future payment of the pension in question.
The ECC approved RS84 million for the Secretariat of the President (public) to replace the obsolete official transport, which allows the acquisition of two mini-buses Hino Coaster and three Toyota Hiace Vans as part of a replacement plan with stages.
The fleet of official vehicles of the President (public) Secretariat is very old and outdated. Most staff cars and other operational vehicles are 12 to 30 years old, resulting in exorbitant maintenance costs, as well as difficulties in performing official tasks for the Head of State. Of a total of 47 authorized vehicles, 43 vehicles will be replaced for a period of three years.
The ECC also approved less than half a billion rupees for the project to improve the digital economy (DEPE) under the Investment Board (BOI) to facilitate the establishment of the Pakistan Business Portal (PBP), aimed at rationalizing the regulations , eliminate redundant laws, and provide a comprehensive digital platform for companies.
ECC approved a proposal from the Ministry of Commerce with respect to the inclusion of new custom tariff codes for recently notified mandatory articles of Pakistan standards and the Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) in the Import Policy Order. The decision incorporates specific PVC and polymer products in the mandatory regulatory framework, ensuring compliance with Pakistan standards.
