PM Shehbaz says he has fervently advocated a unified approach to steer the country out of economic challenges on a path to sustainable growth

ISLAMABAD, June 21 (SABAH): Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has said that he has fervently advocated a unified approach to steer the country out of the economic challenges on a path to sustainable growth.

In a statement issued on twitter on Wednesday, PM Shehbaz Sharif said that employing a whole-of-the-the-government approach, the coalition government has decided to set up a Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) with a mandate to frame economic policies that ensure policy predictability, continuity and effective implementation to revive the economy.

PM Shehbaz Sharif said that by virtue of its composition, the SIFC will serve as a top decision-making forum to push through fundamental reforms in the structure of the economy. “To begin with, the forum will focus on leveraging key sectors such as IT, agriculture, energy, minerals and mining, and defence production” he said.

He said that attracting investment from friendly countries remains one of the key goals of the SIFC. The immediate task is to increase Foreign Direct investment (FDI) to $5 billion, he said.

PM Shehbaz Sharif said that the need for a representative forum like the SIFC has long been felt, given the scale of the economic challenges caused by internal and external factors. The textbook approach to deal with a unique set of problems is not workable anymore. Hence all the more reason to leverage collective wisdom to kick-start the economy to make it self-reliant, export-driven, and robust, capable of withstanding external shocks and upheavals, he said. Creative ideas offer the solution to our economic problems, he said.

Meanwhile in a separate tweet, PM Shehbaz Sharif said that early childhood education is a building block for shaping the personality and determining career pathways for the children. This is at this early stage in their educational journey that they imbibe the basic norms and values of social conduct. Happy to announce the holding of Pakistan Learning Conference 2023 that focuses on building foundations by adopting the global best practices to empower children.

“I was very keen to attend the Conference and listen to the varied perspectives from scholars and policy practitioners from different backgrounds but could not make it due to my commitment to represent Pakistan at a global financial moot in Paris. However, I wish the Conference all the best and look forward to its recommendations for building a resilient and happy future for our children” PM Shehbaz Sharif said.

Meanwhile in a separate statement issued on twitter on Wednesday, PM Shehbaz Sharif said that the reform of international financial architecture has long been a key demand relentlessly made at different forums by public policy scholars, policy practitioners and world leaders especially from the Global South. The grave nature of challenges such as climate change, natural disasters, environment, rising levels of debt and energy transitions has rung alarm bells, he said.

PM Shehbaz Sharif said that the globalisation of the problems has necessitated the need for creative approaches to rethink the global financial system to make it representative and equitable. This is where the New Global Financing Pact Summit in France represents a unique opportunity to the world to come together and agree to broad principles and steps needed for a comprehensive reform of the international financial system.

“During my visit to France, I will present Pakistan’s position on the need for restructuring of international financial institutions to fight the contemporary challenges facing humanity. As a leading stakeholder in G-77 plus China grouping and also as a country adversely hit by climate change threat, Pakistan is better positioned for this role” PM Shehbaz Sharif said.