Sindh CM, federal finance minister agree to work together to strengthen economy

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb have agreed to collaborate to attract foreign investment and boost exports, thereby enhancing the financial stability of the province in general and of the country in particular.

The consensus to this effect was reached in a meeting between the two authorities at CM House on Saturday.

The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary to CM Agha Wasif, Additional Secretary Ministry of Finance Amjad Mahmood, and Finance Secretary Fayaz Jatoi.

The CM said the Federal Board of Revenue and other federal entities were illegally implementing the policy of at-source deductions, contrary to the established policies, thus depriving the provinces of their due fiscal share.

According to Shah, the federal government has been deducting money from the provincial government’s head through at-source deduction. Recently, the federal government has deducted a total of Rs13.4 billion, out of which Rs8.2 billion was for Hesco and Rs5.2 billion was for Sepco power bills.

The CM pointed out that his government has always paid its electricity bills on time, and if there are any outstanding bills then they need to be mutually reconciled. The federal government should have brought the issue to his attention instead of making at-source deductions, he said.

Shah also said that the FBR merely after reading a news item of the cars registered in Sindh from 1948 to 2015 had deducted Rs6 billion from the provincial fiscal share at source. Despite the resolution of this issue, this amount has not been refunded yet, he said.

The federal finance minister told the CM that he was working to develop a proper professional working relationship between the federal and provincial organisations. “The federal and provincial organisations and institutions have to work together, learn from each other’s expertise, support each other for growth and cooperate for collective uplift and development of the country,” he said.

Aurangzeb assured the CM that the issue of at-source deduction would be resolved amicably.

The CM and the federal finance minister also discussed the issue of price escalation of industrial gas. Shah said the industrialists were quite upset with the increase in industrial gas prices.

The federal finance minister said that during his meeting with the industrialists, they also complained to him. Therefore, he said, he agreed to discuss the matter with the federal minister for petroleum to resolve the issue.

The CM said that no new scheme had been awarded to the provincial government in the last eight years under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) of the federal government. Compared to Sindh, other provinces had been given new schemes in the federal PSDP.

Aurangzeb and Shah agreed that the issue of PSDP’s new schemes would be discussed with the federal minister for planning & development.

It was also agreed that the federal and provincial governments would work together to develop the agricultural sector through scientific and modern methods. It was pointed out that there was ample potential to cultivate export-quality crops, vegetables, fruits, and dairy products so that they could be exported to earn foreign exchange.

The CM said he was working to introduce new technologies to improve crop yield while measures were being taken to ensure the provision of certified seeds in the market.

Discussing the reconstruction of flood-devastated infrastructure, he said damaged houses, school buildings, and roads were being reconstructed. He said that the donor agencies had extended a helping hand in the reconstruction of flood-affected infrastructure, but the funds had not trickled down as was pledged by the international community.

The CM and the federal minister also agreed to attract foreign investment in different sectors for which investment procedures would be made simple and automated.

Aurangzeb appreciated the CM’s efforts to establish one of the best public-private partnership units in Sindh. He said the provincial government had evolved an effective public-private partnership programme in Sindh.