New finance minister for Pakistan

PAKISTAN prime minister Imran Khan removed his finance minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh on Monday (29) as part of a government shake-up aimed at bringing in policies to control “rising inflation”, the information minister said.

It is the second time a finance minister has been removed in the two and half years of Khan’s tenure that witnessed GDP growth falling from 5.6 per cent to -0.4 per cent. The move coincides with the restart of a $6 billion (£4.3bn) IMF bailout programme that had been suspended for one year over questions about fiscal and revenue reforms.

“There has been rising inflation, and the prime minister thinks we need to bring in a fresh team which could devise pro-poor policies,” information minister Shibli Faraz told Dunya News TV.

Faraz said the minister for industries and production Hammad Azhar would replace Shaikh. “I am honoured to be entrusted with the additional charge of finance by the prime minister,” Azhar said on Twitter.

“The world is witnessing supply chain disruptions and a rise in food prices. We shall endeavour to protect our people from these shocks.”

Shaikh had lost a parliamentary election earlier this month that was mandatory for him to keep the office of the finance minister constitutionally. However,

he could have stayed in office until June 10.

Pakistan is also preparing to float Eurobonds worth around $2 billion to raise capital from international markets about two months before presenting a budget amid historical remittances and good debt inflows helping to shore up foreign reserves to assist its currency’s recovery against the dollar.

The central bank on March 19 kept its policy rate at seven per cent for a 10th consecutive month to support recovery while keeping inflation expectations well-anchored and maintaining stability. It also revised the growth rate to two per cent from three per cent for the current fiscal year.