The Cabinet Committee on State-owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs) expressed concern over the failure of certain SOEs to complete their financial audits for several years, a statement from the Finance Division said on Tuesday.
The committee meeting, chaired by Finance Division Muhammad Aurangzeb, directed the concerned entities to initiate their audit processes without further delay.
It also instructed the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) to examine such cases and present its findings and recommendations to the CCoSOEs in due course, according to the statement.
Pakistan approves four potential bidders for struggling national airline PIA
Pakistan has been actively pursuing the privatisation of its SOEs for many years. The goal is to improve efficiency, reduce fiscal burden, attract investment, and stimulate economic growth. However, the government failed to privatise any entity in the fiscal year 2024-25.
In a statement earlier this month, Pakistan government said it had approved four parties to potentially bid for a stake in debt-ridden Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
The country has been seeking to sell a 51-100% stake in the struggling national airline to raise funds and reform cash-draining, state-owned enterprises as envisaged under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund programme (IMF).
It would be the country’s first major privatisation in nearly two decades.
Among the bidding groups, one is a consortium of major industrial firms Lucky Cement, Hub Power Holdings, Kohat Cement and Metro Ventures.
It may be noted that Pakistan government failed in the first attempt to privatise the PIA last year after receiving a single offer, well below the asking price of more than $300 million.
Meanwhile, the Tuesday’s committee meeting also considered and approved a proposal submitted by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for the appointment of independent directors to the Boards of Pakistan Television Corporation (PTVC) and Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC).
“Following a rigorous shortlisting process, six independent directors were approved for each of the two Boards. For the PTVC Board, the approved names included Ishtiaq Baig, Yasir S. Qureshi, Dr. Asghar Nadeem Syed, Tasneem Rehman, Leyla Zuberi, and Khalid Mehmood Khan. For the PBC Board, the selected directors included Sadia Khan, Jehangir Khan, Sadiqa Sultan, Nasira Azim Khan, Khan Bibi, and Nadeem Haider Kiyani.”
The committee also deliberated on a proposal from the Ministry of Industries and Production regarding the constitution of the Board of Directors of Agro Food Processing Facilities.
“The committee approved the nomination of four independent directors: Hasnain Nawaz Khan, Shahid Mehmood Sahu, Ahsan Mustafa Bajwa, and Ghulam Jaffar Junejo. In addition, three ex-officio members will serve on the Board. The Committee further endorsed the proposal to appoint Hasnain Nawaz Khan as the Chairman of the Board.”
The cabinet body reviewed and approved, with directions for further refinement, the Procurement Policy of Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) as presented by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs.
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“It was appreciated that the PNSC is the first State-owned Enterprise to formulate and adopt a comprehensive procurement policy tailored to its operational needs.”
The committee also approved a summary from the Ministry of National Food Security and Research for accepting the resignation of the Vice President of the Pakistan Central Cotton Committee (PCCC), effective March 25, 2025, on personal grounds. The official had been appointed to the position by the Federal Cabinet in May 2024.
Another item approved by the committee related to the appointment of directors and members to the Board of the National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF), as proposed by the Ministry of Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives.
“The committee further considered and approved a proposal from the Strategic Plans Division for the exclusion of SPD entities from the consolidated reporting requirements of the Ministry of Finance and granted them complete exemption from the State-Owned Enterprises Act and Policy of 2023, in recognition of the sensitive and security-related nature of their operations,” the Finance Division said.
