Cabinet approves accessing 50pc cargo through Gwadar Port

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet on Thursday approved directives for all government agencies to ensure that 50 percent of their imports, such as wheat, sugar and fertilizer, are accessed through the Gwadar Port. The cabinet also directed that the percentage of exports through Gwadar Port should be increased in the future.

The federal cabinet gave the approval during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

During the meeting, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the government was actively working on reforms in the power sector and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

About unabated Israeli barbarism and atrocities against innocent Palestinians, the prime minister once against strongly condemned the massacre of Palestinians and termed it a black chapter of the human history. The prime minister expressed dismay over the silence of international conscience on the Israeli aggression saying that the international community’s conscience should wake up to end these atrocities. The federal cabinet, meanwhile, approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Pakistan and Sri Lanka for the issuance of a commemorative postal stamp to mark 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

A report from the cabinet committee established by the Ministry of Industries and Production regarding the export of sugar was presented in the meeting. The cabinet expressed satisfaction that a better decision by the cabinet on sugar exports not only brought valuable foreign exchange to the country but also kept sugar prices under control and provided fair compensation to sugarcane growers for their efforts. A sub-committee of the cabinet will be formed to present a quarterly report on imports and exports through the Gwadar Port.

On the recommendation of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, the forum approved the reconstitution of the Board of Directors of the Korangi Fish Harbour Authority, Karachi. The cabinet directed that such government boards should include representation from all the provinces.

Meanwhile, the federal cabinet has approved names of chairmen and members of three boards of the Power Division, the official source said. The sources said that the name of ex-secretary Irfan Ali has been approved as Chairman of the Power Purchasing Agency while Amna Sohail, Raheel Ejaz and Jalal Ahsan will be its members.

The cabinet has also okayed the name of Jamal Nasir as Chairman of the Power Planning and Monitoring Company. Board members will include Dr Fahad, Sardar Nawafil, Khalid Masood and Zainab Janjua. The Power Information Technology Company will be chaired by Habibur Rehman Gilani with Fatema Asad, Murtaza Zaidi, Syed Sajjad Ahmad and Sardar Nawafil.