In order to increase forex reserves, the Pakistani government is seeking to outsource the management of prominent airports, including Islamabad International Airport. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has established a deadline of August 12 for the completion of the outsourcing process.
Amidst the ongoing decline of forex reserves, the Pakistani government has been actively advocating for the outsourcing of significant airports, such as Islamabad International Airport (IIA), as reported by Dawn's sources.
According to a report by Dawn, a meeting was conducted on Saturday, led by Dar, where the progress of airport operations outsourcing was evaluated. The steering committee explicitly instructed the completion of essential procedures for prioritizing the outsourcing of IIA.
Following the meeting, an official statement was released, indicating that the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a branch of the World Bank, provided an update on the progress as the transaction advisor for the outsourcing. The meeting reached a consensus to expedite the outsourcing of Islamabad International Airport (IIA) to enhance service quality in alignment with industry standards.
On March 31, the Economic Coordination Committee made the decision to commence a 25-year outsourcing plan for operations and land assets at Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi airports. Through a public-private partnership, these functions will be managed to generate foreign exchange.
According to reports from Dawn, during the meeting, the finance minister set a deadline for the relevant departments to conclude the revisions to civil aviation laws and establish a restructuring plan for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
The amendments are being implemented to separate the roles of the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority, PIA, and Airports Security Force. The aim is to eliminate any overlap in responsibilities among these organizations by enacting ordinances.
Dar emphasized the importance of obtaining parliamentary approval for the amendments before the end of July. Meeting this timeline is crucial as it would enable international aviation regulators to send inspectors in August to conduct an on-site evaluation of operational systems and standards required to reinstate PIA's flights to the US, UK, and Europe.
According to reports from ANI, failure to meet this deadline would result in a year-long delay before the inspections can take place.
In addition to the finance minister, the meeting was attended by Federal Minister for Aviation and Railways Saad Rafique, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Finance Tariq Bajwa, the secretary of the Aviation Division, CEO of the Public Private Partnership Authority, director general of PCAA, representatives from the IFC, and other government officials.
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