Aurangzeb meets US energy official

WASHINGTON: As the Bretton Woods Institutions’ annual Fall gathering comes to a close Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb met the US assistant secretary of state for energy resources on Friday afternoon.

The minister briefed the US official on the challenges faced by Pakistan’s energy sector and reforms being introduced by the government. He also thanked the US government for offering support with regard to the country’s transition to renewable energy.

Earlier, the minister met with the representatives of S&P Global where he shared updates on macroeconomic stabilisation, fiscal consolidation measures and external account developments which were reflected in improving key indicators across the board.

Hoping that the rating agency would upgrade Pakistan’s rating soon, Aurangzeb said that the government financing cost was coming down which would reduce the debt servicing cost. The minister also participated in the World Bank organised event “Growing Stronger: An Urgent Call to Improve Child Nutrition.”

Highlighting the high incidence of child stunting in Pakistan especially in rural areas, he called for a multisectoral and whole-of-government approach to rectify the situation. The finance minister emphasised the need for reforms in taxation, reduction in energy subsidies and improvement in the management of SOEs to create more fiscal space for increased investment in climate change, population control and child stunting.