Structural Reforms in Power Sector

A talk by former Director General (Standards) NEPRA Muneer Aman Sheikh on “Structural Reforms in Power Sector” was organized on March 02, 2011. Fasih Uddin, former Chief Economist, Government of Pakistan chaired the session. Following is the gist of the discussion:

A talk by former Director General (Standards) NEPRA Muneer Aman Sheikh on “Structural Reforms in Power Sector” was organized on March 02, 2011. Fasih Uddin, former Chief Economist, Government of Pakistan chaired the session. Following is the gist of the discussion:
The talk of structural reforms in Pakistan’s power sector is not something new and ‘reforms’ have been a key component of deals Pakistan entered into with the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) since 1980s. However, the reforms demanded by the IFIs and those proposed by the then government have hardly been in line with each other. Reforms should not be unidirectional and interests of all the stakeholders should be protected.

The objective must be clear; any move should be in accordance with the laws and regulations in place particularly the NEPRA Act and should not merely be a response to the demands of any institution like IMF. At a larger level, all available sources of power generation should be exploited to the maximum, with focus on renewable energy resources and promotion of indigenous technology for long-term and sustainable improvement of the sector. Practically, there are no shortcut solutions.