ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, on Tuesday approved an increase in the Privatization Commission Board’s membership from 8 to 11, based on recommendations from the Privatization Division.
In line with the Prime Minister’s directive on International Women’s Day to enhance female representation on significant boards, new positions on the board will be filled by women, according to a press release from the PM Office Media Wing.
The cabinet also took measures to control urea fertilizer prices, instructing that gas supply to urea manufacturing factories be maintained beyond September 2024, contrary to urea imports as previously decided by the Economic Coordination Committee on August 2. Recognizing agriculture’s critical role in the economy, the cabinet emphasized reducing agricultural input costs to lower farmers’ expenses per acre.
Further, the cabinet ratified the decisions made by the Cabinet Committee on Privatization on August 2 and requested a comprehensive plan for the privatization of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) that had already been approved.
On the recommendation of the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training, the cabinet approved the regularization of daily-wage teachers of the Federal Directorate of Education (FED) in compliance with a court order.
Additionally, the cabinet approved the signing of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) for political consultations with Guatemala and Ecuador, based on recommendations from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The cabinet also ratified decisions from the Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs) on August 5 and from the Cabinet Committee on Legislative Cases on July 31.
