Islamabad: The federal government’s five-year privatisation programme has fallen significantly behind schedule, with only two state-owned entities privatised despite two years having passed since the programme was launched.
The federal government approved the five-year Privatisation Programme 2024–2029 in August 2024, outlining a phased plan to privatise selected state-owned entities.
Under the original plan, the programme was divided into three phases, with a total of 24 entities selected for privatisation.
The first phase targeted the privatisation of 10 entities within one year.
However, despite two years having passed, the government has managed to complete the privatisation of only two of the 10 entities identified under the first phase.
The two entities successfully privatised are First Women Bank and Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
The failure to meet the first-phase targets has slowed one of the federal government’s major economic reform initiatives.
The privatisation programme is aimed at reducing the financial burden of state-owned enterprises, improving operational efficiency and increasing the role of the private sector in the economy.
However, the completion of only two privatisations against a first-phase target of 10 highlights significant delays in the implementation of the programme.
