ISLAMABAD, June 20: Asian Development Bank has noted with satisfaction a major improvement in the performance of Pakistan’s Public Sector Entities (PSEs) during past fours years and called for further accelerating the process by removing the impediments.

These views were expressed by Marshuk Ali Shah, ADB Country Director, while delivering a speech at a seminar on “Transformation of Public Sector Entities (PSEs),” in Karachi.

He said that it is heartening to note that during the last four years “we have seen major improvement in the performance of the PSEs”.

However, he said that the transformation process needs to be accelerated further by the government by removing the impediments. Marshuk Ali Shah on the occasion reiterated that ADB fully supports the governments’ sincere efforts to transform the PSEs.

“With the government determined to convert the public sector institutions into professionally managed, self sustained units and then to privatize them, ADB will continue to provide necessary support and assistance through its various assistance programmes”, he remarked.

The ADB’s country director said that Government of Pakistan by inducting commercially discipline leaders in PSEs like Railways, Pakistan State Oil, PIA, PNSC, Pakistan Steel and nationalized banks has shown that professional management can do wonders even in PSEs.

He added that these institutions have been turned around primarily due to individual efforts rather than institutional building.

The government should focus on developing institutions on a sustainable basis through the measures including, detachment from bureaucracy, corporatization and privatization, human resource development, and accountability through checks and balances, he suggested.

About the setting up of regulatory authorities, he observed that one of the major structural change happened in Pakistan in the last few years in the formation of independent regulators.

These regulators would be act as checks and balances in the post privatization scenario, he added.

He said that the successful formation of PTA, NEPRA, OGRA and others would ensure level playing field for both public sector and private entities and at the same time the consumer interest would be protected.—APP