NEC to unveil budget targets on June 3
The federal government has called the meetings of the Annual Planning Coordination Committee (APCC) and National Economic Council (NEC) on June 2 and 3, respectively, to finalise the development programme and set targets for the macroeconomic indicators for 2023-24. The 13-member NEC led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is the country’s highest forum of the federation on economic decision-making. It also includes four federal ministers – Ishaq Dar & Ahsan Iqbal of PMLN, Syed Naveed Qamar of PPP and Asad Mahmood of JUIF. Eight provincial members of the council include four chief ministers besides Punjab’s minister for energy S.M. Tanveer, Sindh Senator Nisar Khuhro, KP’s adviser energy Himayatullah Khan and Balochistan’s finance minister Noor Muhammad Dummar. The APCC led by federal minister for planning and development Ahsan Iqbal and comprising provincial ministers for finance and development would review the development activities during the current fiscal year that was marred by diversion of funds from various infrastructure projects to discretionary spending on smaller schemes recommended by the parliamentarians, financial cuts amid growing fiscal deficit and a struggling IMF programme.