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Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Federal Minister for Privatisation & Investment
chaired here today the first meeting of the "Prime Minister's Task Force on
Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation" constituted by the Prime
Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali recently.
In his opening remarks the Chairman of the Task Force Dr. Hafeez Shaikh said
that the present government was determined to improve the quality of the life
of the people through generating greater economic activity in the country,
exploiting all available resources to overcome the poverty issue and to extend
maximum job opportunities purely on merit basis.
He said that the Task Force should develop practical recommendations within a
month for further poverty reduction and Employment Generation. The Task Force
would build upon the great efforts of the Government of the President General
Pervez Musharraf to improve the economy and combat poverty, he added.
Dr. Hafeez Shaikh further added that the Task Force should set up their
Committees. The Task Force also agreed to meet weekly to submit its
recommendations to the President and the Prime Minister in the given time.
The Task Force also reviewed the current status of poverty and unemployment in
the country, assessed 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 and discussed various options for
improvement and acceleration in the existing programmes. The Task Force
members will also identify specific new initiatives and recommend
implementation strategy in their upcoming meetings.
The Task Force members including nine members from public sector Dr. Nasim
Ashraf, Chairman NCHD, Mr. Javed Sadiq Malik, Secretary Planning &
Development, Mr. Waqar Masood Khan, 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 included Dr. Akmal Hussain Lahore, Dr.
Salman Shah Lahore, Mr. Shahid Kardar Lahore, Dr. Mushtaq Mirani, Hyderabad,
Ms. Saadiqa Salahuddin Karachi, Malik Naeem Khan from Quetta and the
representatives of the respective organizations attended the meeting.