KARACHI  -  Caretaker Prime Minis­ter Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Friday said that the government was ensur­ing the implementa­tion of its institutional reform agenda besides taking practical steps for documentation of the economy.

In a meeting with members of the Paki­stan Stock Exchange and heads of leading compa­nies of Pakistan, he said that the facilitation of the business commu­nity and investors was among the priorities of the government. 

The prime minister also highlighted the establishment of the recently established Special Investment Fa­cilitation Council, its positive initiatives to attract foreign invest­ment, and the encour­aging results.

In the meeting, the CEO Pakistan Stock Exchange thanked the prime minister for his visit and gave a detailed briefing regarding the stock exchange.

The prime minister was in­formed that in the last few months, due to the busi­ness-friendly policies of the government, the confidence of the investors and the busi­ness community had increased which also led to a boom in the business as well as the stock ex­change. The participants of the meeting also appreciated the government’s seriousness and institutional reforms. Prime Minister Kakar commended the services of Pakistan’s business community and investors for the country. 

The meeting was attended by Caretaker Federal Minister of Finance and Chairperson of Pa­kistan Stock Exchange Dr. Sham­shad Akhtar, Chief Executive Of­ficer of Pakistan Stock Exchange Farrukh Khan, Chairman of Se­curities and Exchange Commis­sion of Pakistan Akif Saeed and heads of other leading compa­nies of Pakistan.

INVESTORS’ CONFIDENCE

Anwaarul Haq Kakar also said that the investors had regained confidence after the successful signing of a standby agreement with the International Mone­tary Fund (IMF), the execution of the annual budget 2023-24 and improvement in the fiscal and external accounts.

The prime minister, address­ing the ceremony marking the first auction of the Government Ijarah Sukook bonds issued by the Pakistan Stock Exchange, said it was the collective respon­sibility of the stock brokers, SECP, and other participants to promote upcoming primary market auctions to market it a remarkable achievement for the entire market ecosystem. He congratulated all the stakehold­ers on the auction of the Gov­ernment Ijarah Sukook through PSX, instead of the State Bank of Pakistan, which was aimed at simplifying the participation in government securities auction, diversifying the investors’ base, and enhancing transparency.

He lauded the market partic­ipant for their interest in the auction through PSX particu­larly the participation of the re­tail market. He told the gather­ing that the stock exchange was a dynamic force and a heartbeat that resonated with the aspira­tions of business and progress. 

The prime minister, who lat­er rang the gong of the stock ex­change said it did not only her­ald the market transactions but also a symphony of progress and prosperity.

“The gong’s echoes reverber­ate not only within these walls but across the financial corri­dors of the nation, symbolizing our commitment to fostering an inclusive and robust financial ecosystem that welcomes di­verse voices and promotes eco­nomic prosperity shared by all,” he remarked.

He said initially, Pakistan’s economy faced multiple chal­lenges at the start of 2023-2024, but the government addressed structural and macroeconom­ic issues to rectify the situation. 

He said the collective efforts of all stakeholders had success­fully brought the economy back on track, leading to a lower dol­lar rate from 307 on September 5 in the interbank to 284 today which also resulted in a decline in inflation. Prime Minister Ka­kar said the bullish sentiment in the stock exchange was made possible by an improved econo­my, the participation of foreign investors, a high yield, and a sta­ble exchange rate.

He said the capital market provided fuel for businesses to expand, create jobs, and con­tribute to the overall develop­ment of society. He reiterated the government’s commitment to fostering an environment that nurtured the resilience of the capital market, recognizing its critical role as a stabilizing force that absorbed shocks and steered the economy toward stability. 

The prime minister called for efforts to build a capital market that not only mirrored econom­ic strength but also embodied values of fairness and integ­rity. In her address, Caretak­er Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar welcomed the prime minister to launch Government Sukook Auction through PSX. 

‘EQUAL RIGHTS FOR MINORITIES’

Caretaker PM Anwaarul Haq Kakar reaffirmed the equal rights for minority communities and called for enforcing meritoc­racy and social opportunities for their uplift and mainstreaming. The prime minister, in an inter­active session with the students of Aga Khan University, said the minorities were equal Pakistanis as Madina State had also guaran­teed equal responsibilities and rights for the citizens. Calling for infusing a sense of confidence in the people, he said that meritoc­racy should be enforced, and so­cial opportunities for minorities should be created.

To a question, he said that the people of Pakistan enjoyed free­dom of expression and consid­ering the country’s political history, any particular incident could not be associated with the government of that particular term. He said that the incidents involving the violations of free­dom of speech were not limited to a particular government. The prime minister, responding to a query by a university student about the arrest of journalists, said that during the tenure, he was referring to, the journalists were shot at and faced many such acts which were against the freedom of expression.

“You have a freedom of expres­sion and speech. You spoke your heart before the prime minister. After this, your allegation of no freedom of speech would carry lesser weight,” he remarked.

About the rights and status of Gilgit Baltistan, he said GB was and would remain part of Pa­kistan. He said the matter of rights should be tackled peace­fully without any resentment.

“The political procedure should move forward. The GB should be our Singapore. Our identities are associated with each other,” he remarked.

To a question, the prime min­ister said after the 18th amend­ment, health was a devolved subject with the provinces hav­ing all the funding to spend on the sector.