A World Bank delegation called on the President/CEO National Bank of Pakistan, Saeed Ahmad. The World Bank team was led by Korotoumou Ouattara (Senior Financial Sector Economist), Adrey Milyutin (Senior Housing Finance Specialist), Nouma Dione (Financial Sector Specialist) and Olivier Hassler (Housing Finance Adviser).
The delegation also included representatives of PMRC (Pakistan Mortgage Refinance Company) including N. Kokularupan, MD & CEO, Dr Muhammad Saleem, Chief Operating Officer and Syed Ali Adnan, Head of Treasury.
The meeting was to discuss overall growth of the housing finance market in Pakistan, its issues, challenges and possible solutions. The World Bank team apprised that in coordination with key stake holders they were proposing to assist Pakistan for development of this market and were preparing a Housing Finance Project.
This Project will provide: (i) support to expand conventional mortgage lending; (ii) support to increase lower-income housing finance; and (iii) capacity building and technical assistance for housing policy. In addition, PRMC was also talking to banks for providing support for on-lending.
Saeed Ahmad, CEO & President National Bank of Pakistan gave an overview of the challenges that Pakistani housing finance market was facing including recovery and foreclosure laws, infrastructure, cost of funding and affordability. He emphasized that, "Affordable housing segment offers an opportunity to financial sector to expand its portfolio on a secured and profitable basis. This will help further improve other industries, generate employment and contribute to growth on an ongoing basis. Together with this, a public/private partnership to tackle housing solution for low income segment of the society will help solve housing problem and eliminate Slums (Kutchi Abadis) which are creating various social problems including un lawful activities. With my association with PMRC as a Chairman in the past, I would suggest PMRC to take a lead to create schemes which could benefit all stakeholders, and provide business opportunities for PMRC."
Korotoumou Ouattara from World Bank explained the importance of the changes that the housing finance project aims at triggering, starting with fixed rate lending and increased lending to households particularly low-income segment. She also stressed on the importance of this sector and its overall contribution towards county's economic development.-PR
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