The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Monday approved the import of both wheat and urea.
The ECC meeting chaired by Caretaker Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar discussed and approved the summary submitted by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research regarding the cost-efficient import of 1 million metric tons of milling wheat for the year 2023-24, through the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) under through open tendering process, to maintain the strategic reserves.
The ECC also approved the proposal for encouraging the private sector to import specified milling wheat under the Ministry of Finance notification of 14th November 2008, while meeting the criteria envisaged in the import policy order 2022. The ECC also directed the Ministry to conduct a third-party verification of the wheat stock in the country.
The meeting also considered a summary of the Ministry of Industries and Production regarding the measures to meet the requirements of urea for Rabi season 2023-24. The committee discussed the proposal in detail and approved the immediate import of 200,000 MT of urea fertilizer. The meeting also directed that an uninterrupted supply of gas for the fertilizer industry be ensured. It was also decided that the provinces would be asked to act more proactively to bear the importation cost.
The meeting also deliberated over a summary submitted by the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) for approval of the Technical supplementary Grant of Rs. 484 million to meet critical expenditure on pay and allowances of 415 contract and project employees from July 2023 onwards. The ECC directed the Ministry of Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives to identify the savings to finance the salaries of the ERRA employees.
A summary of the Ministry of Finance regarding the establishment of the National Credit Guarantee Company Limited to support the credit enhancement of the Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) was also considered and approved by the forum.
The meeting was attended by the Minister for Commerce, Industries, & Production Gohar Ijaz, Minister for Communications, Railways, & Maritime Affairs Shahid Ashraf Tarar, Minister of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Sami Saeed, Minister for Power & Petroleum Muhammad Ali, and Minister for IT & Telecom Dr. Umar Saif.
