Ijaz Kakakhel Islamabad
A legislative body of Senate on Wednesday expressed concerns over the growing dollar instability, unprecedented electricity cost and a 22% interest rate that are making it challenging for current businesses to survive and thrive.
These views were expressed during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue, which was held here at Parliament House, while Senator Saleem Mandviwalla on Chair.
Senator Mohsin Aziz highlighted the issue of ‘Capacity Payment’ currently stands at Rs.1.2 trillion, being paid to IPP’s, and advised that the government should reconsider its agreement with them. Caretaker Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar stated that Country’s economy need a lot of fixing and ministry is tirelessly working on multilateral fronts to deliver the task.
She stressed that mobilisation of local resources and structural reforms in State Owned Enterprises is the need of the hour and it will bears fruit for the struggling economy. Caretaker Finance Minister decided to provide a comprehensive briefing on Country’s Economy to Standing Committee in the upcoming week.
The Committee deliberated on the Private Member Bill titled “The State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill,2023”. Senator Mushtaq Ahmed,mover of the bill, apprised that purpose of the bill is to curtail the unbridled powers of the State Bank of Pakistan and enable the government to borrow money from the SBP.
However, Dr. Inayat Hussain, Deputy Governor SBP, argued that the amendment made in the previous year was aligned with the ongoing IMF program and aimed to instill fiscal responsibility in government operations. The Committee deferred the deliberations on the bill till the next meeting.
