Economy, flood recovery taken up: Dr Hafeez Sheikh attends IMF-World Bank meeting, meets IFIs, US officials

Pakistan is focused on macroeconomic stabilisation, domestic resources mobilisation, public sector restructuring and addressing some of the structural issues including power sector, Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said as he met with world finance leaders during annual IMF-World Bank meetings.
To meet the challenges of post-floods rehabilitation and reconstruction, the government is re-prioritising its development budget and making necessary adjustments in the foreign assistance, he said. Besides attending IMF-WB meeting, Dr Shaikh is also heading the Pakistani delegation of top economic managers at Commonwealth Finance Ministers Conference, Inter-Governmental Group of 24 Meeting.
Dr Shaikh met with Saudi Finance Minister Dr Ibrahim Al-Assaf and thanked him for the Saudi assistance to Pakistan for the flood victims. Both sides agreed to engage the private sectors of the two countries for enhancing private investment in Pakistan.
Saudi Arabia has already honoured its pledge made at Tokyo last year and has released full amount for the first year. The finance minister also briefed the senior leaders of the United States including Deputy Secretary Treasury Neal Wolin, Special Assistant to the President on International Economics and Special Representative Ambassador Richard Holbrooke regarding on-going tax policy and energy sector reform as well as strategy to deal with post-floods rehabilitation and reconstruction.
He highlighted that Pakistan is disbursing cash grants from its own resources for partially compensating the damages done to private properties and early recovery. The Finance Minister urged fast-track reimbursement of Coalition Support Fund and disbursement of funds under the Kerry-Lugar-Berman Act committed and authorised by the US Congress earlier this year.
Dr Shaikh in his meeting with the Vice President of the World Bank Isabel Guerrero emphasised the early completion of Damages and Needs Assessment that could provide a basis to design and implement rehabilitation and remonstration framework.
He stressed that the institutional framework already exists for approval of necessary projects and the government has already notified the oversight council to ensure transparency. He said Pakistan is open to suggestions to ensure credibility and transparency of approval and implementation processes. It is important to start the reconstruction to restore public infrastructure damaged during floods, he noted.
Meanwhile, the finance minister participated in the Intergovernmental Group of 24 meeting where the ministers noted that the recently concluded UN Summit has highlighted the progress made on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), as well as the substantial challenges that still remain. The ministers emphasised that actions undertaken by developing countries before the financial crisis have allowed gains, albeit uneven ones, at the level of poverty reduction, school enrolment and children''s health and access to clean water.
The ministers called for co-ordinated and sustained efforts to tackle hunger and malnutrition, maternal health, gender equality, environmental sustainability and basic sanitation, especially in low-income countries and fragile states which seem to lag behind the most.
The finance minister also met with his Iranian counterpart Hosseini as they discussed matters of mutual interest and emphasised more such exchanges to enhance bilateral trade. The Pakistani delegation includes State Bank Governor Shahid Hafiz Kardar, Secretary Economic Affairs Division Sibtain Fazal Halim and Additional Finance Secretary Saleem Sethi.