Govt taking all possible steps to ensure business-friendly environment for investors: PM

ISLAMABAD (APP) - Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday expressing the government’s resolve to increase investment in the country, said the government was taking all possible steps to provide business friendly environment to the traders and investors.

Chairing a meeting on increase in investment and capacity of federal government Ministries at the PM House, the prime minister directed the relevant authorities to formulate a steering committee with respect to the progress on increasing investment and capacity of the federal ministries. He said that he himself would chair the committee.

During the meeting, it was informed that the Public Private Partnership Authority had hired a consultancy firm Kearney to get the services of experts with regard to increasing investment and enhancing the capacity of the federal ministries. Kearney is a world renowned firm which operates across the world especially in the Middle East.

In the meeting, Kearney informed the prime minister about the strategy of its ongoing consultative process with the government of Pakistan. The firm has so far consulted with 15 institutions of the federal government while 97 priority projects have been identified in this consultation process, the meeting was told.

Kearney said it would develop a plan of action for sustainable development in consultation with Pakistan government while it would also provide assistance to the Government of Pakistan with respect to the privatization of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), improving the regulatory framework of public sector enterprises and attracting more investors.

The meeting was attended by Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Division Ahad Khan Cheema, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Minister of State for Finance Ali Pervaiz Malik, Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Jehanzeb Khan, PM’s Coordinator Rana Ihsan Afzal and other relevant high officials.