ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Tuesday vowed to continue the policies of the outgoing government and bring more economic reforms to the South Asian country, which has been dealing with an economic crisis for the last one year.
The statement by the caretaker prime minister came after he received briefing from officials of various ministries on the economic situation and other important issues, a day after taking oath of his office.
In late June, Pakistan clinched a crucial $3 billion deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to avert a sovereign default on its international obligations, however, the South Asian country has to continue with the reforms agreed with the lender to keep receiving the loan tranches in order to keep the frail economy afloat.
“[We] will maintain continuity of national economic policies and bring more economic improvements,” Kakar was quoted as saying by his office.
“Measures to increase foreign investment in the country under the Special Investment Facilitation Council are among the priorities of the caretaker government.”
He directed officials to accelerate the implementation of ongoing reforms in the power sector and strictly follow the measures to increase tax revenues.
“The caretaker government will focus on deregulation and responsible autonomy to improve the economy,” he said. “[It] will spend all its energies on reforming the economy in its limited period.”
The meetings, attended by senior officials, including the central bank governor, finance and power secretaries, and revenue chief, came a day after Kakar assumed office for a period of three months until the elections that are due in November.
But the outgoing government’s approval of the results of the 2023 digital census has cast doubts about timely conduct of polls as the country’s election regulator is now required to redraw hundreds of constituencies as per the new results.
The election regulator will be able to provide an election date only once the constituencies are redrawn and the vote is thus widely expected to be delayed to as far ahead as February.
Many fear the caretaker government would stay in the country for a longer period, particularly after the outgoing government approved certain amendments to the Elections Act in July.
Under the amendments, the interim setup has been empowered to take action on the ongoing bilateral and multilateral agreements, mainly related to the economy.
Separately, Kakar, who hails from Pakistan’s impoverished Balochistan province, instructed authorities to strengthen physical connectivity of Balochistan with the rest of the country, saying it was important to develop a robust infrastructure to ensure the country’s development and prosperity.
“Good infrastructure is key for the development of any country,” an official statement circulated by the PM Office quoted him as saying. “Road infrastructure needs to be built on a priority basis in those parts of the country where foreign investment is expected.”
“Special work is needed on road infrastructure in Balochistan,” he continued. “The government’s job is to make people’s lives easier.”
Kakar also held several meetings to form the interim federal cabinet, with local media reporting his plan to work with a limited number of team of ministers.
“Former chief minister of Balochistan Jam Kamal and Ali Mardan Domki met Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar,” informed another statement issued by his office. “Jam Kamal congratulated the prime minister for assuming responsibilities to his office and expressed sincere wishes. The prime minister also thanked Jam Kamal.”
