ISLAMABAD: Minister for Petroleum Musadik Masood Malik on Thursday said Pakistan was heading towards the right direction as it had successfully controlled inflation, achieved substantial growth in agriculture sector and witnessed an increase in foreign reserves.
He was speaking at the concluding plenary of the four-day Sustainable Development Conference organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).
Malik said the current government had three key priorities, and they were decreasing inflation, ensuring better public life and reducing poverty.
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“The government aspires to take the GDP growth rate from 2.4 per cent to 3 per cent as its agriculture sector was growing at a rate of 6.3 per cent, ensuring better economic activity in the rural areas,” he said.
He said investment in social protection initiatives such as the BISP and increase in PSDP funding would help ensure development and increase in livelihood opportunities for the younger generation.
The minister said decreasing policy rate, rising foreign reserves and growing foreign direct investment commitments were optimistic indicators that strengthened the country’s economic outlook.
Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Romina Khurshid Alam said collaboration between the SDPI and Climate Change Ministry had forged new synergies, with the intention to drive well-informed policy discourse.
She said Pakistan was committed to bringing resilience at the community level against adverse impacts of climate change.
At the upcoming COP29, Pakistan will passionately be advocating for climate finance, technology transfer and capacity building of vulnerable communities, she said. Alam said that she would be sharing recommendations from this conference at COP29.
In a plenary titled, “Annual State of Renewable Energy 2024”, energy experts debated on the status of renewable energy sector, saying that the mushrooming growth of self-generated electricity was a major threat to national grid.
CEO of Attock Refinery and Attock Gen Limited Adil Khattak pointed out that Pakistan was currently producing more energy than it needs, which was not only causing distribution inefficiencies but was also becoming a hurdle in transitioning towards renewable energy.
Company Secretary at United Energy Pakistan (UEP) Tanveer Afzal Mirza said despite political and economic challenges, the private sector had demonstrated a willingness to invest, particularly in the wind energy sector, which had attracted nearly $3 billion in investments.
Tauseef H Farooqi, former chairman of the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) criticised the current energy system, stating that it is “neither affordable, nor reliable, and certainly not sustainable.”
Farooqi explained that while private sector involvement was essential, the government must create profitable, long-term options for investors to thrive.
Responding to this, Daniyal Siddiqui from DSC Energy Ltd said that fast-tracking CTBCM could stimulate investment and further the green finance goals of Pakistan.
Imran Rana, spokesperson for K-Electric, shared that the utility company aimed to source 30 per cent of its energy from renewables.
Managing Director of the Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB) Shah Jahan Mirza said while Pakistan had made strides — generating 38 per cent of its energy from renewables in the last fiscal year – there was still much work to be done.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024