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PM Imran appoints Dr Sania Nishtar special assistant with status of federal minister
Prime Minister Imran Khan has appointed Dr Sania Nishtar, a renowned health expert and activist to the post of special assistant to the prime minister on social protection and poverty alleviation with the status of federal minister.
The appointment was announced in a May 14 Cabinet Division notification.
Dr Nishtar possesses impressive credentials, with broad-ranging experience in civil society, government, international development, policy and advocacy, humanitarianism and development, institution building and reform and with firsthand experience setting up institutions, fundraising and partnership building.
The chairperson of the Benazir Income Support Programme and the Poverty Alleviation Coordination Council, Dr Nishtar is a Sitara-i-Imtiaz recipient and also served as a minister in the 2013 caretaker government. She is believed to have played an instrumental role in re-establishing the health ministry during her tenure.
Dr Nishtar established non-profit think tank Heartfile in 1998, an NGO that focuses on analysis and solutions to improve health systems in order to achieve universal health coverage in Pakistan and other developing countries.
She was appreciated multiple times by the prime minister during his announcement of the ambitious Ehsas programme, a social safety and poverty alleviation programme for the welfare of the people.
Dr Nishtar has been described as "eminently qualified and brilliant" by former foreign secretary Riaz Khokhar, and as "extremely capable and experienced in international affairs" by Dr Zulfikar Bhutta, founder of Aga Khan University's Center of Excellence in Women and Child Health.
She was appointed co-chair to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) high-level commission on non-communicable diseases, and as chair to the US National Academy of Sciences initiative on the Quality of Healthcare in low and middle-income countries and heads the United Nations International Institute for Global Health’s Advisory Committee.
She was nominated by the Government of Pakistan in 2015 to succeed Antonio Guterres (now United Nations secretary general) as the High Commissioner for Refugees, and in 2017 to succeed Margaret Chan as the WHO director general.
Dr Nishtar has authored numerous research papers and books. Her latest publication, Choked Pipes is a textbook for post-graduate level studies and a reference guide.
The addition of Dr Nishtar brings the total number of federal cabinet members to 48. The number includes 24 federal ministers, five ministers of state, five advisers to the prime minister. and 14 special assistants to the prime minister.
Comments (69) Closed
Very encouraging! PM is finally turning to the right people after a failed first year!
Good appointment
Dr. Nishtar is good choice.
Let's hope Dr Sania Nishtar will be able to reduce poverty and create an effective health system that will help all people, specifically those who cannot afford medical care. This will be a challenging task and I wish Dr Nisthar good luck and hope to see some tangible changes and results in the future.
Merit bears fruit.
Good luck!
First evert a worthy choice by IK
Thank you IK for picking right people for the job.
Congrats to Dr Sania Nishtar.
Wasn’t she with brave Musharraf too?
48 in the cabinet and counting. A far cry from we will have no more than 25 as stated by Imran Niazi in opposition.
Now some good appointments are coming forth.
Dr Sania Nishtar is a brilliant Pakistani and would be real asset in any role assigned to her in governance. A view on her credential would be enough to see and appreciate her highly commendable achievements, so far.
Well looks like the American Presidential system where you appoint experts. No complaints from me especially when you consider the quality available from Pakistani politicians.
Another technocrat!!!
Good move to select people based on their talent instead of their political lineage.
An effort to keep smart, intelligent and capable people around you so that you don't look a fool.
Excellent choice. Considering our state of affairs, I am all in favor of bringing in experts to manage vital ministries.
Good hope for Pakistan,s bright future.
Daughter of Peshawar.
Why not appoint her to the health portfolio? Isn't that her forte? Does she have experience in social development and poverty alleviation?
Good choice provided given free head and mind to rxcercise
Looks like a good choice ..... now let's hope the bureaucracy allows her to deliver.
All special assistant not adding a single value to the lives of common man.
Very good all assembly in pakistan abolished and technocrat and talented people appointed on all ministry. Next move Ik make is to employ Technocrats and talented PM in Pakistan who can run country efficiently
With too many engagements and commitments at a time will not result in fulfillment in any sphere. Let us see how she tackles polio, TB, family planning and degradation of environment the cause of diseases.
govt in action
Welcome to the club and the clubhouse. Keep it up and hang on tough.
Dr. Sania is the wife of Ghalib Nishtar - President of Khushhali Microfinance Bank. Both are eminent practitioners in their respective fields.
Imran Khan is not leaving any stone unturned to put Pakistan on the right track. He deserves commendation on his honest approach to achieve success in all fields.
@SAB, Pakistan needs the best minds, not the mediocre politicians to run the country.
Dr. Nishtar is a proven expert in the area of social policy and public health. Hope, her expertise are utilized and she is given full autonomy to do good for the Pakistanis.
She is Musharraf choice
Shame None capable within the party!!!!
Good choice but ministers list is getting big PM need to let some elected mini8 go home so he can reduce the numbers
appointment as Minister of non political, non elected persons should be exception.
Is there any value of an elected member or parliament in Pakistan? Or aren’t there any qualified and educated decent people as parliamentarians? Either ways democracy is a far cry on Pakistan.
@Anti-Corruption_Pakistani, A Minister cannot alone reduce poverty. It is team work of policymakers and implementing agencies. Imran Khan is running a hybrid government comprised of varying mindsets. The infighting among these people are visible. Addition of MS Nishtar will not change anything.
Appointment on merit and credentials? That’s a new for any government, finally, can we also look into other ministries and replace ministers based on credentials and not because they supported the government so it can win the elections ?
Impressive credentials indeed. Hopefully she will contribute to the betterment of the country.
@Ali Khan, just want to put down a person because of the association? Have u seen her credentials?
@ijaz, very true, first he appointed his unworthy people from PTI now appointing eligible people from other parties.
@Ali Buttar, Yep.. Non politicians. That was the idea all along
If SPECIAL ASSISTANTS are being posted with status of Minister in most of crucial Department of country then ELECTED MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT OF PROVINCIAL as well as NATIONAL ASSEMBLY become Joke out of it.
FAIQUE ALI JAGIRANI
Too many Ministers with perks in poor Pakistan.
Another step towards a complete technocrat setup and return of Musharraf.
Good move
Excellent discision.
Another technocrat.This just gives a glimpse of the confidence Khan Sb has on his elected team.
Talented and honest people do not make burden. Their services are vehemently needed
Only merit and selflessness will steer Pakistan to progress. Nothing is more important than Pakistan.
It is requested to Dr Nishtar to please improve govt hospitals. Make a big hospital equipped with all the modern technology and equipment in every divisional headquarter than mushrooming of small hospitals in every district and town. Connect all govt hospitals with software and computer network. So that record of a patient traveling or shifting to other city can be accessed from anywhere in Pakistan.
Keep on inducting more people with the status of federal minister everyday. We can afford it since we have the money from everyone. Spend it again like there is no end to it.
@Anti-Corruption_Pakistani, every thing can be solved only through the path of Islam.
I must say.... Mr Khan has hand picked the team and that really seems very effective and efficient. on a positive note hopeful to see the results this team will bring in near future. I am praying that he succeeds its very necessary at this point of time. we want our country to prosper under an honest leader.
Good choice.
Sania Nishtar is a competent woman for this job. I wish her all the success in her new assignment.
Nothing wrong with a technocratic set-up esp. given educational background of most of our elected law-makers. Barely a handful, say 5-10% are educated in the real sense and have qualified from good colleges or universities. Besides what does someone with a bachelors in arts subjects (which is what most of the rest have literally done) know about running health or economy? This is the biggest drawback of the parliamentary system imo. For certain specialist fields you do need specialists or experts. Ideally the finance minister should be a top economist, education minister an educationist, health minister a top doctor with some experience in hospital administration, defence minister an ex-serviceman and so on. Hence I prefer the presidential form of governance because most of the appointments are based on merit rather than someone's political affiliation. Trump for instance does not have to have a single politician in his cabinet if he so wishes!
Daunting job. Sometime knowledge and experience do not help much in achieving certain objectives — poverty alleviation is one those objectives,
Good choice and good luck to Dr. Nishtar.
Our pride, a great KMCite. Khyber Medical College.
He has realized that politician not fit for administration
Now the good team is being put in place.
She has Rich experience in health sector and probably in social sector. I would suggest the newly incumbent Minister to base all policy and planning respecting social protection and poverty alleviation on gross root and practical grounds to achieve the targets.
PM Imran is going totally overboard. He is hiring more and more advisers and ministers and what not. Please reduce these drastically, dont increase their numbers. Don't you know that saying that "too many cooks spoil the broth "?
Impressive
This is a wise move by PM Khan, the elected members of the assemblies i.e politicians have shown no talent nor any tendencies of management, that is not a surprise when it was found out that around 60% have fake education degrees even at the basic level of high schools, can we expect any good from such politicians who have shown nothing except corruption and brought shame on our entire society, out with them and out with this fake democracy, Presidential system is the need of the hour. Technocrats and professionals need to be brought in on merit to manage our failing governing systems.
Lots of ministers and no result, hire some smart and result oriented mind. Smart people live in other places than Punjab also, Mr. IK.
@Ali Khan, Who is "brave Musharaff "?
48 cabinet members for a country that has less foreign exchange reserves than over 1000 individuals around the world. The United States can run the largest government in the world with only 16 cabinet members.
@WayToGo, I personally believe that Musharraf himself should be brought home and asked to help in any way that he can. You don't have many people in Pakistan quite as capable as Musharraf is.