State-owned corporations: Sale of convertible bonds to go ahead

Private sector to be tapped for generating funds.

ISLAMABAD: The Privatisation Commission plans to proceed with the sale of convertible bonds, equity linked instruments, for state-owned enterprises in the international markets to tap private sector funding for ensuring future growth of these entities.

This information was given during a briefing on Thursday to a visiting eight-member Australian parliamentary delegation led by the President of the Legislative Assembly of Australia, Chairperson State Senate, Amanda Fazio. Fazio is currently on an official visit to Pakistan.

The delegation was further informed that Pakistan’s privatisation programme yielded over $9 billion proceeds (Rs476 billion) through privatisation of 167 transactions.

They were told that the present government’s privatisation policy emphasised on the sale of 26 per cent shares of the entities on the privatisation list with management control for value addition, improving efficiencies and enhancing production while making them profitable, before offering the turnaround entities to potential and sound investors, instead of just divesting the majority chunk.

The delegation was also told that 100 per cent state-owned enterprises in the chemical, textile, fertiliser, cement, rice and light engineering sectors while 98 per cent units of automobile industry, 96 per cent ghee (Oil) mills and 100 per cent of phosphate fertiliser units have been privatised.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 17^th, 2010.