CCoSOEs Approves Key Appointments and Discusses SOE Restructuring

The Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs) convened on Wednesday and sanctioned several pivotal board-level appointments. Among these was the selection of Aasim Aziz Siddiqi to lead the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) as Chairman and Shoaib Mir Memon to head the Pakistan Reinsurance Company Limited (PRCL) as Chairman.

This decision occurred during a CCoSOEs assembly at the Finance Division. Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb, presided over the meeting through remote participation.

According to details shared by the Finance Division, the committee reviewed and green-lit a proposal put forth by the Ministry of Commerce concerning the filling of vacant board positions at TCP.

Specifically, the committee validated the designation of Aasim Aziz Siddiqi as the Chairman of TCP’s Board, Ayesha Aziz as an Independent Director, and Shoaib Mir Memon as the Chairman of PRCL’s Board.

Furthermore, the committee instructed relevant ministries, including the Finance Division, to assess and refine the process of appointing individuals to board positions within state-owned enterprises.

Concerns Over Financial Audits

The CCoSOEs voiced concerns regarding the delays in SOEs completing their financial audits.

The committee advocated for commencing the appointment process well ahead of the incumbents’ departure to avert delays and ensure operational consistency, as stated in the released information.

In addition, the committee endorsed the appointment of three ex-officio members to the Board of Directors of Postal Life Insurance Company Ltd, as proposed by the Ministry of Communications.

The ministry has been tasked to present a summary for the appointment of a board chairman from the existing four independent directors. This is aimed at enhancing the board’s functionality and advancing the entity’s restructuring and potential closure, as it is still listed for privatization.

Moreover, the committee scrutinized a proposal from the Ministry of Industries and Production concerning the restructuring of the Board of Directors of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA).

The committee gave the go-ahead to a list of six private sector individuals for independent director positions, including Saif Ali Rastgar (Punjab), Mashood Khan (Sindh), Osman Saifullah Khan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Israr Khan Kakar (Balochistan), Aasia Saail Khan (representing women), and Dr. Syed Zahoor Hassan (development sector).

The session wrapped up with a briefing from the Ministry of Science and Technology on the restructuring and renaming of the Scientific and Technological Development Corporation of Pakistan to the Indigenous Research and Development Agency (IRADA), which aligns with an earlier decision by the committee, according to the released statement.