KARACHI, Oct 4: The advisory panel of Pakistan’s senior economists constituted by the Planning Commission a few weeks ago is holding its second marathon session from Monday at Lahore to finalise economic stabilization, sustainable growth, income distribution and social sector development programme ahead of the scheduled meeting in October of the Friends of Pakistan in Abu Dhabi and annual sessions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in Washington.

Headed by a well-known economist Dr Hafiz Pasha, the panel includes Dr Rashid Amjad, Dr Akmal Hussain, Dr Naved Hamid, Ijaz Nabi, Dr Qazi Masood, Asad Saeed, Haris Gazdar, Riaz Riazuddin, Dr Cheema and Saqib Shirani.

It will deliberate from Monday to Friday and is expected to present a report to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on what is being called a “home grown strategy” to achieve economic stability, maintain a sustainable growth tempo, ensure an equitable income distribution and a programme of social development that should effectively answer poverty issue.

“The committee’s report will serve as a reference document for the government to present before the Friends of Pakistan, who include the developed G-7 countries, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, China and other countries,’’ one of the members of the advisory panel said.

The Fiends of Pakistan have already held a first preliminary session in New York last month and had announced to hold next meeting in early October at Abu Dhabi to work out a financial assistance programme for Pakistan.

With dwindling foreign exchange reserves and value of Pakistani rupee under mounting pressure of ever-widening current account imbalance, Pakistan is now in badly need of foreign exchange assistance to remain afloat and also to maintain a growth tempo.

“The Pakistan government has already given an economic salvage plan to our international donors, a well-placed and authoritative source in the federal government told Dawn from Islamabad.

“He said that the international donors had been informed of Pakistan government’s short and long-term strategy for coming out of the present economic mire.

An official team from Pakistan likely to be led by Shaukat Tareen, who is being tipped as the federal government’s adviser on Finance and Economic Affairs, may present Pakistan’s case before the IMF, World Bank and Friends of Pakistan.

Senior officials in Islamabad fear severe foreign exchange crunch and difficulties in lodging letters of credit for imports from December or January next.

“We want firm pledges of foreign exchange assistance in next few weeks from our donors,’’ a local business leader having close connections with top officials in Islamabad confided.

But what confuses many economic analysts in Karachi is the secrecy maintained by the government about the short and long-term salvage plan prepared by the officials and given to IMF and World Bank without even discussing its features in the cabinet, Economic Coordination Committee of cabinet what to talk of parliament or a relevant parliamentary committee.

“I think the government should have shared the main features of this short and long-term salvage plan with the media,’’ the well-placed source in Islamabad remarked while expressing his inability to speak any word on it as it is a job of someone who is designated as government spokesman.

“But it is not that secret also,” he explained and referred to Pakistan government’s commitment given to international donors soon after taking over the government responsibility to withdraw all subsidies on oil and gas before December 2008, which is being done.

More than 300 items from import list have been brought under regulatory duties and cash margin and media reported Rs100 billion cut in the current fiscal year’s public sector development plan (PSDP).

“The advisory panel of economists has sought information on impact of all these measures on the budget and on the economy,’’ Dr Qazi Masood from Institute of Business Administration in Karachi disclosed.

He hoped that the government will provide panel with all the information in the Lahore meeting.

“The panel is addressing both budget deficit and growing current account imbalance,’’ Qazi Masood said.

Expressing his personal views he contended that the PSDP had been the first and the only victim of budget stability in the past.

“But I believe the current expenditure budget will also been given a hard look this time.’’

Let’s wait for the report of a committee that is looking at the constitutional subjects of concurrent list,’’ he said to point out that the time has come for the federal government to prune out extra fat from its bureaucratic structure.

“There is no need of those institutions in the federal government, which are responsibility of the provincial governments,’’ he made it clear.

“Cash margins and regulatory duties are not proving effective to curb imports,’’ he said and suggested to put a straight ban, may be for one or two years, on import of a large number of consumer items and even on some machinery and equipment, which are not needed.

There is a need to contain import bill to a manageable level with care that a restriction

on imports does not affect exports.

Businessmen, analysts and bankers see October as a crucial month for Pakistan.

There is a general belief that the country will get some assistance from the donors “but only to the extent that we remain afloat and do not sink,’’ said a senior business leader, who is convinced that the international community wants to keep Pakistan perpetually economically hard pressed so that terms could be dictated to the government in Islamabad.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said on Thursday at Multan that the US cannot fight war on terror without Pakistan’s help’’ dropping a hint that some pledges of financial assistance will come this month.