ISLAMABAD: The caretaker government has decided to start the process of approving development projects against its mandate, which is necessary to secure more foreign loans. 
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar has reconstituted the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council, which is the authority to approve development schemes. Finance Ministers will be its members.
According to the sources, the Planning Commission may re-convene the meeting of the Central Development Working Party regarding the reforms in the FBR in connection with the loans of 300 million dollars of the Asian Development Bank next week, before that the World Bank also for the reforms in the FBR. 400 million dollars has been loaned, but nothing has changed, the caretaker government’s restructuring of ECNEC and CDWP meetings is a violation of the caretaker government’s mandate, the caretaker government has the mandate to take decisions only on ongoing projects.
Sources, however, say that approval of working papers and concept papers is required for some foreign-funded projects to get foreign loans, which is why these steps are being taken, including the $300 million Asian Bank-backed loan. The Domestic Resources Mobilization Budget Support Loan is at the top.
Sources say that Caretaker Finance Minister Dr. Shamshad Akhtar requested the Director General of Asian Bank in a virtual meeting this week to issue a loan of $300 million, but he refused due to some pending approval.
