SHANGHAI, May 10: Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz said that United Bank Ltd (UBL) would be privatized within next two months.

It will be followed by the privatization of Habib Bank, he said here on Friday while talking to APP.

The Minister is here to attend the 35th session of the Asian Development Bank’s Board of Governors.

Pakistan, he said has resorted to a viable and transparent privatization policy, aimed at strengthening the role of private sector in national development.

He said the privatization programme, interrupted by the events of Sept 11, is back on the fast track. The relevant law, he added assures transparency in the sale process.

Between 1991-94, 66 units were privatized. By end-1997, the total increased to 92 and by end-2000, the number stood at 106.

Aziz said gross privatization proceeds stood at about Rs61 billion. Almost three-quarter of the proceeds came from the three units: telecommunication, KAPCO, and Habib Credit and Exchange Bank.

Most of the proceeds, he added, goes to debt retirement, while 10 per cent of it is being spent on the uplift of social sector, including health and education.

In a presentation during the Asian Development Bank’s annual meeting he said, “if we can have consistency and continuity we think that Pakistan has a potential for investment.”

He said the government was now ready to offer stakes in the United Bank Ltd in the next two months, followed by Habib Bank Ltd.

“We’ve done a lot of work and now’s the time to bring them to market,” Aziz said. “As these are completed, a major part of the country’s banking system will be in private hands.”

He said preparations were also quite advanced for the sale of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL).

He said economic growth in the year ending in June was likely to be around 3.5 per cent. With indications for next year looking favourable, he said the government’s target of growth between 5.2 per cent and 5.5 per cent by 2003/04 was “very achievable”.

With Pakistan’s current account also in surplus, Aziz said he had no need right now to tap the international capital markets.

But he said he might reconsider if the secondary market price of Pakistan’s sole outstanding eurobond, which has risen sharply, kept going up.—Reuters