Miftah Ismail made adviser to PM on Finance

ISLAMABAD: The government has appointed Miftah Ismail as Adviser to the PM on Finance and Economic Affairs with immediate effect, a notification issued by the Cabinet Division said on Tuesday.

Miftah Ismail has been given the status of federal minister. Miftah belongs to Ismail Industries Limited, which is one of the largest food companies in Pakistan, manufacturing a wide range of biscuits, snacks and packaging under brand names of CandyLand, SnackCity and Astro Films respectively.

Born in Karachi, he received his B.S. from Duquesne University in business studies in 1985, followed by a PhD in public finance and political economy from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, in 1990. He worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as an economist based in Washington D.C. in early 1990s.

He returned to Pakistan to work for his family business in 1993. His family also owns substantial shares in the Bank of Khyber. He joined the Pakistan Muslim League in 2011 and served as the head and vice-chairman of Punjab Board of Investment and Trade in 2012 and 2013.

During the 2013 elections, Ismail served as a member of the election strategy team and the manifesto committee of Pakistan Muslim League. In October 2013, Miftah Ismail became a member of the board of Pakistan International Airlines. In November 2013, he joined the Sui Southern Gas Company and retained both positions until January 4, 2014 when he was appointed as the head of Federal Board of Investment. He was taken as a junior member of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's cabinet.

Under his leadership, the Board of Investment is undergoing massive restructuring including winding up of its regional offices. During his tenure at the Board of Investment, the government formulated a new auto policy that attracted new investment.

In a statement, Miftah said: “I bow my head in humility to Allah (SWT) for the honour of being appointed Adviser to the Prime Minister for Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs. I am grateful to my leader Mian Nawaz Sharif for his kindness and to the Prime Minister of Pakistan Shahid Khaqan Abbasi for placing his trust in me. I am also thankful to many leaders in the party for continuing to mentor me over the years, including my first boss in politics Mian Shahbaz Sharif, and Khawaja Mohammad Asif, Professor Ahsan Iqbal and Sen Pervaiz Rasheed. It is a joy also to thank many other leaders, friends and colleagues in PML-N for their constant support over the years.

“Although, I will have stewardship of the Ministry of Finance for only five months, the prime minister has tasked me with helping him implement a very ambitious agenda. “In line with Mian Nawaz Sharif’s vision, the prime minister has instructed me to try to lower individual tax rates, widen the tax net, come up with a scheme to repay the refunds owed to our taxpayers, reform certain corporate taxes that are adversely affecting capital formation and also study the possibility of allowing Pakistanis to bring their undocumented wealth into the country’s economy.

“At the same time we will continue to lower the budget deficit and the current account deficit and boost our country’s foreign exchange reserves. “These are not easy targets the prime minister has set. But then Mian Nawaz Sharif and PML-N have never shied away from difficulty. With the guidance of my leaders and the support of my friends, inshallah I hope to help Prime Minister Shahid Abbasi meet as many targets as possible.

“I come into this office after many years in different government positions with I dare say a reputation of integrity and I consider it to be of absolute importance that I go out with my reputation intact. Anything less would be a disservice to myself, my family, my party and my country. May Allah help me in this endeavour.”