ISLAMABAD: A US delegation led by diplomat Alice Wells, acting assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, held a meeting with Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Abdul Hafeez Shaikh today at finance division in Islamabad.
Shaikh briefed the visiting delegation on measures pertaining to economic reforms being undertaken by the government to ensure economic discipline, efforts being made towards implementation of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) action plan.
He emphasized the importance of bilateral engagement with the US and the need to encourage entrepreneurs from the private sector of both the countries which help to enhance trade volume.
Sheikh further said that over the past three months, the government has taken significant steps to bring financial discipline including a reduction in current account deficit, focus on increasing revenue generation, measures to reduce fiscal expenditures, efforts to enhance foreign exchange reserves through bilateral and multilateral support.
Further, as part of an institutional development initiative, SBP and FBR are being resourced and empowered. At the same time, to support economic growth and facilitate masses living below the poverty line, various programs to support the export-oriented industries and health insurance schemes have been introduced.
Coming towards the implementation of FATF’s plan, the adviser briefed the visiting delegation that the government is putting in all-out efforts to fulfill the requirements, involving all relevant authorities at the federal and provincial levels, supported by capacity building through international partners.
As the meeting concluded, Wells appreciated the briefings and expressed that the US would continue to remain engaged with Pakistan in its economic reforms efforts and help build an environment that facilitates business development between the two countries.
