Share this story!            

NFC Award

Four factors approved for distribution of resources: Qaim

By Razzak Abro

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah said on Friday all stakeholders of the National Finance Commission (NFC) have agreed to change the formula for the distribution of federal resources among the provinces, from the sole criterion of population to four factors.

The chief minister was speaking at a press conference at the Chief Minister’s House on his return from Peshawar after attending the finance minister’s meeting on the NFC Award.

He said it was the first meeting pertaining to the NFC Award where all stakeholders have agreed on introducing multiple criteria in place of only population. “It was a breakthrough in the context of the NFC Award,” he added.

Provincial Ministers Pir Mazharul Haq, Syed Ali Nawaz Shah, Advisers Waqar Mehdi, Rashid Rabbani, PPP Karachi leaders Najmi Alam and Saeed Ghani and Information Department Secretary Malik Israr also accompanied the chief minister.

According to the chief minister, representatives of the federation and the four provinces have approved the introduction of four factors setting the provinces’ share in the Federal Divisible Pool. Those include population, poverty, revenue collection and generation, and area. The NWFP has demanded that war on terror be included as the fifth criteria of resource distribution in the forthcoming NFC Award, he said, adding that Sindh has no objection over its inclusion in the NFC.

The chief minister said that another important development made at the Peshawar meeting was pertaining to the GST on services. According to him, although it was already agreed upon at the pervious Quetta meeting, that the GST on services would be a provincial subject and provinces would collect the tax, now it has been made clear that besides collecting the GST on services, the provinces would also distribute the tax.

Shah said the provinces have also demanded an increase of their share in the Federal Divisible Pool, and he expects that they would get the maximum share. However, the quantum is yet to be decided. He said that the provinces would also benefit from the introduction of multiple criteria for the NFC Award. According to Shah, some things are yet to be settled, including the percentage of share under the newly introduced criteria.

Responding to a question, the chief minister said that previously he was expecting that deliberations on the NFC Award would be completed within two months, but it seems like they would take time because of various issues linked with the NFC Award and financial matters of the provinces have been decoded. He, however, termed it a positive approach, saying that the NFC Award is an important issue, and the PPP government does not want to decide it within hours like past governments.

Home | Karachi

Share this story!