Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday directed completion of ongoing federal government’s low-cost housing projects expeditiously, besides asking for collaboration with the private sector to boost investment in the housing projects.
The prime minister also instructed ensuring a third-party validation of construction in the federal government housing projects.
The prime minister chaired a review meeting of the ongoing projects in the Ministry of Housing. Federal Ministers Riaz Hussain Pirzada, Ahsan Iqbal, Attaullah Tarar and other senior officials attended the meeting, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
The ministry of housing informed the prime minister about the progress on the ongoing reforms and policy measures in its various departments.
PM directs prompt completion of low-cost housing projects PM directs prompt completion of low-cost housing projects
It was informed that consultations with all the stakeholders for amendments in the National Housing Policy 2001 had been completed and the process for its final approval would be completed by March 2025 as per the prime minister’s instruction.
The meeting was further apprised that the system for allocating houses to the government employees and grant of rents had been digitized, which would help eliminate corruption and bring transparency in the system.
The prime minister was also apprised of the ongoing and future projects under the Pakistan Housing Authority.
The meeting was told that work was progressing rapidly on 630 low-cost residential units in Kuchlak, Quetta and 4,112 residential units in Islamabad.
The prime minister directed for prompt completion of these projects and third-party validation.
It was further informed that work on 5,728 low-cost residential units in Peshawar would begin soon while work on 5,600 residential units in Rawalpindi and Islamabad would kickstart in the near future.
The prime minister directed seeking of services from the reputable construction companies for all these residential projects.
He said renowned international construction companies should be selected for projects for government employees and the public.
The prime minister said selection process of the construction companies should be conducted through a transparent process and on merit, adding these projects should be completed within the stipulated time frame.
The prime minister was given a detailed briefing on the affairs of the Federal Government Employees Housing Authority.
The meeting was briefed on the digitization and reforms of the Federal Government Employees Housing Authority, online payments, digital systems for complaint resolution, one-window operations, real-time monitoring, geo-tagging, and other reforms which were being implemented to enhance transparency and efficiency in the system.
The meeting was also informed about different projects under the authority for constructing international standard facilities in Islamabad, including a five-star hotel, hospital, IT park, apartment complexes, and international standard schools.
The prime minister directed the submission of a comprehensive plan detailing construction costs and the required time for these projects.
The meeting was informed about the dissolution of PWD and other non-functional organizations.
The prime minister expressed satisfaction with reduction in corruption due to the dissolution of PWD and other non-functional organizations in the ministry and also acknowledged the digitization of the current official housing allocation system.
The prime minister said that they would take every possible step to provide affordable housing to every citizen of Pakistan, adding reforms were being taken to reduce corruption in the low-cost housing projects for citizens.
Due to government efforts, he observed that Pakistan’s image on the global landscape had been restored and the events like international cricket matches, other sports, and global conferences were being hosted by the country.
The prime minister directed that international standard hotels, hospitals, and other facilities should be established to facilitate the foreign guests and sought a comprehensive plan from the ministry in this regard.
He also directed the formulation of a national housing policy by March for approval, adding public housing projects under the ministry should be completed expeditiously to provide affordable housing for the working class.
The prime minister further directed the constitution of a committee for dissolving non-functional organizations and reforms in the ministry of housing and other ministries.
The committee would assist not only the ministry of housing but also other ministries about carrying out necessary reforms.
Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that after functioning in Karachi, the faceless customs assessment system should be broadened and implemented in other cities as soon as possible so that all imports across the country could benefit from this system.
The prime minister chaired a review meeting on the matters related to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The meeting was attended by Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Khan Cheema, Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar, Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Ali Pervez Malik, and other senior officials, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
PM desires implementation of faceless customs assessment system in other cities PM desires implementation of faceless customs assessment system in other cities
The prime minister observed that significant progress had been achieved in the digitization and reforms within the FBR in previous months, adding for the first time in history, a system with faceless digitization system had been introduced in the customs process, marking a significant milestone in the digitization of the FBR.
The prime minister directed the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication and FBR to work together to further improve the faceless customs assessment system.
He desired that the system should be shifted to artificial intelligence by minimizing the human intervention.
He also directed for the development of a comprehensive strategy for the implementation of the track and trace system in various industrial sectors.
The meeting was briefed over the recent FBR reforms. The faceless customs system at all Karachi port terminals would be made fully operational by the end of February 2025, it was told.
Besides, efforts were underway to ensure its operation nationwide soon. A central control room was being established to monitor the faceless customs system, it was further added.
The meeting was apprised that body cameras and tablets would be used to make the inspection recording system more transparent. Whereas mobile signal jammers and CCTV cameras were also being installed at all terminals to enhance the transparency of the inspection system.
A transparent recruitment process for the new customs system had been initiated while a track and trace system had been implemented in all industrial units of the tobacco, fertilizers, sugar, and cement industries, the meeting was briefed.
The implementation of the track and trace system led to a significant increase in revenue from the tobacco, sugar, cement, and fertilizer industries in the fiscal year 2023-2024 compared to the previous corresponding year. Further improvement in revenue from these industries was expected with the full implementation of the track and trace system this year, it was added.
The meeting was told that under the prime minister’s directive, the upgradation of the web-based One Customs began and its design was expected to be completed by the end of March.
