PM Shehbaz praises KSA, UAE for highly valuable support

LAHORE: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif said on Saturday that the country’s economy is facing a difficult time, however, we will overcome it soon.

While addressing the passing-out ceremony of probationary officers of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), here on Saturday, the premier hoped that the civil servants were capable of steering the country out of the current challenges.

Sharing his views about the economic challenges faced by the country, he stated that during the past 75 years, different governments whether headed by the political leadership or military dictators could not address the economic issues, and time was wasted with the creation of chaos and protests.

The Prime Minister said that Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) could be achieved if we move at fast pace in the right direction. “During my recent visit to the United Arab Emirates, the UAE president had very graciously announced to grant a further $1 billion loan to Pakistan,” he said and lauded the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the financial support.

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He added that Pakistan was facing economic issues and meeting the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) conditionalities. He was of the view that seeking further loans was not a right solution to their economic challenges as the loans would be returned back.

The Prime Minister commended the civil servants for serving the flood-affected people and visiting different areas of the country. He asked the officers that after assuming their basic responsibilities in the practical life, they would be confronted with issues like unemployment, poverty, disease, lack of education and delayed response to public problems.

He was of the view that it should be a collective agenda of every one including political hierarchy to provide an enabling environment to the civil bureaucracy to serve the masses with dedication. If conducive environment was provided to the civil servants, they could excel with their full potential, he added.

The PM stated that he had set a two-month target for the civil administration for the establishment of education facilities in one of the flood-affected areas of Balochistan and during his recent visit to the province he admired them for establishing a smart school within the stipulated timeframe.

Terming the probationers as ‘Future of Pakistan’, the Prime Minister expressed the optimism that they would perform with dedication and honesty as the nation had attached expectations to them.

Earlier, Director General Civil Services Academy, Lahore Omer Rasul highlighted the role and contributions of the academy in training the future bureaucrats to serve the county and masses with their capabilities and dedication. The PM also gave away certificates to the outstanding officers.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023