HAFEEZ TO LEAD PRIME MINISTER's TASK FORCE ON POVERTY ALLEVIATION & EMPLOYMENT GENERATION

Islamabad, December 04, 2003

The Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali has constituted a 16 member "Task Force on Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation" under the Chairmanship of Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Federal Minister for Privatisation & Investment.

The Task Force will review the current status of poverty and unemployment in the country, assess the impact of public sector development and related programmes on employment generation and poverty alleviation and the government policies and programmes for poverty alleviation and employment generation through private sector development, to suggest improvement and accelaration in the existing programmes, identify specific new initiatives and recommend implementation strategy, says a notification issued by the PM Secretariat here today.

In addition to the 16 members, the Task Force may co-opt any additional member as and when required. Nine members from public sector include Dr. Nasim Ashraf, Chairman NCHD, Dr. Ishrat Husain, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, Mr. Javed Sadiq Malik, Secretary Planning & Development, Mr. Waqar Masood Khsn, Secretary Economic Affairs Division, Dr. Ashfaq Hasan Khan, Economic Advisor, Finance Division, Dr. A.R. Kamal, Director PIDE, Dr. Nuzhat Ahmad, Director Applied Economic Research Centre, Chairman, Planning & Development, Government of Punjab/ Additional Chief Secretaries, Government of Sindh, NWFP and Balochistan and Mr. Shaukat Hayat Durrani, Additional Secretary (EA), Prime Minster's secretariat. While the seven members from the private sector include Mr. Farid Rehman, Peshawar, Dr. Akmal Hussain Lahore, Dr. Salman Shah Lahore, Mr. Shahid Kardar Lahore, Dr. Mushtaq Mirani, Hyderabad, Ms. Saadiqa Salahuddin Karachi and Malik Naeem Khan from Quetta.