ISLAMABAD: The Prime Minister’s Office announced a major reshuffle of the federal cabinet today, with key portfolios of the finance, interior and information ministries seeing new faces.
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday appointed Dr Hafeez Sheikh as Adviser on Finance.
Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh is an internationally renowned economist with more than 30 years of experience in economic policymaking, management and implementation.
Dr Shaikh has undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in economics from Boston University. He had worked at Harvard University and World Bank, where he was country head for Saudi Arabia and as a Senior Official advised 21 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America. He served as the finance minister from 2010 to 2013 during the PPP government’s rule.
During his tenure as federal minister, Dr Shaikh completed 34 sale transactions worth Rs300 billion in banking, telecom, electricity and manufacturing. In 2000-2002, he was minister of finance, planning and development of Sindh.
He was then appointed as the minister for privatisation and investment in the Pervez Musharraf administration.
According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, portfolios of key ministers have been reshuffled.
Party leader Fawad Chaudhry, who was holding the portfolio of the ministry of information and broadcasting, will now serve as minister for science and technology.
Similarly, Ghulam Sarwar, who was the petroleum minister, has been given the charge of the ministry of aviation.
Brig (r) Ijaz Shah, the erstwhile minister for parliamentary affairs, has been named as the minister for interior.
Shehryar Afridi, who was the state minister for interior, will now take charge as the minister of state of SAFRON.
While Mohammad Mian Soomro, the federal minister for privatisation, shall cease to hold the additional portfolio of the aviation division. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Azam Swati is being appointed as minister for parliamentary affairs.
The statement further read that Dr Zafarullah Mirza, Firdous Ashiq Awan and Nadeem Babar have been appointed special assistants to the prime minister for national health services, information and petroleum division, respectively.
