The government is determined to continue implementing the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) program, federal Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin told the incoming country representative of the Fund, Esther Perez Ruiz, on Monday. She was accompanied by her outgoing counterpart, Teresa Daban Sanchez.

The IMF representative, in turn, assured the finance minister that the Fund would continue to cooperate with the country.

Stressing the need for economic stability in the country, Shaukat Tarin said that the government sought to achieve a sustainable growth besides adopting various steps for improving the standard of living for the poor.

The government, he said, was providing direct relief to consumers after a hike in prices of food items, adding that it was trying to broaden the tax net in a bid to increase revenue generation.

The IMF country head and the finance minister discussed the overall economic situation in the country as well as greater cooperation with the IMF.

Meanwhile, a meeting was held in the finance ministry to discuss problems faced by the domestic CNG sector. The meeting was attended, among others by federal Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar and a delegation of the CNG association.

According to the minister for energy, the incidence of government taxes on petrol and diesel was lowest among other regional countries.

Hammad Azhar said that petrol price in Pakistan was also the lowest in the region.

He said that the entire world was facing an economic crisis because of the Covid-19 complications.

In a related development, the ministry of finance announced that it had set up a committee for the redressal of problems faced by the domestic CNG sector.

In a meeting with a delegation representing the country’s CNG sector, Shaukat Tarin said that the petroleum levy was also the  lowest in Pakistan and this was an effective public relief measure.

The finance minister was briefed about the problems of the CNG sector by the chairman of the association.



from News – SAMAA https://ift.tt/3ibskP4
via IFTTT