ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Sunday approved policy recommendations for a ‘Medium Term Structural Reform Framework of Economy’ as well as a ‘Social Protection Framework’ to ensure that the vulnerable segments of the society are protected. A meeting of the Economic Advisory Council chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan was briefed on policy recommendations for mobilizing finances for development, enhancing exports and strengthening SMEs, tax reforms, job creation, impact of major policy actions and social protection priorities in Pakistan in the light of the proposals of the working groups of the Economic Advisory Council. The policy recommendations were finalised to focus on acceleration of under-utilised areas including agriculture, housing, small and medium enterprises in terms of incentives, reliance on export-oriented and labour-intensive growth, reversal of anti-export bias, enhanced system automation and use of technology, transparency in trade regime, facilitating importers, job creation through skill development, ease of doing business through business-friendly environment while focusing on productivity and moving on technology sophistication. The comprehensive social protection framework aims at overcoming the challenges of poverty, health, stunted growth, education and enabling the youth realise their potential and extricate themselves out of generational poverty traps.Finalization of these policies will help lay the foundation of a sustainable, inclusive, job-creating and export-oriented economic growth strategy as part of the government’s 100 days plan. Minister for Finance Asad Umar, Minister for Planning and Development Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Adviser to PM Dr Ishrat Hussain, Syed Saleem Raza, former governor State Bank of Pakistan, Dr Naved Hamid, professor at Lahore School of Economics, Sakib Sherani, economist, Dr Faisal Bari, associate professor at LUMS, Dr Asad Zaman, VC Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Dr Abid Qayyum Sulehri, ED Sustainable Development Policy Institute, Governor State Bank Tariq Bajwa, Secretary Finance Arif Ahmad Khan, Advisor/Executive Director General (IERU) Dr Khaqan Hassan Najeeb and other senior officials attended the meeting. Sources said the meeting also gave approval to seeking a loan of $40.2 million from the World Bank for the poverty eradication programme announced earlier by Prime Minister Imran Khan. It was decided that an amount of Rs5 billion will be released from the national development fund for the Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme. Published in Daily Times, November 26th 2018.