HAFEEZ SHAIKH TO CHAIR PRIME MINISTER'S TASK FORCE ON POVERTY ALLEVIATION & EMPLOYMENT GENERATION

Islamabad, January 02, 2004

Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Federal Minister for Privatisation & Investment and chairman of the "Prime Minister's Task Force on Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation" will preside over a meeting of PAEG on Wednesday January 7, 2004 at Islamabad. The Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali constituted the Task Force. Prior to the finalization of the recommendations within a month PAEG is involving all the stakeholders for their views, suggestions and proposals.

The Task Force is in the process of reviewing the current status of poverty and unemployment in the country, assessing 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 acceleration in the existing programmes, identify specific new initiatives and to formulate its recommendations for an implementation strategy. The Task Force is now preparing a draft presentation for the Prime Minister for the poverty reduction and employment generation.

The Task Force includes Nine members from public sector 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 Minister's secretariat and seven members from the private sector 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.