The Living Scripts | Engr Dr M Akram Sheikh (Federal Minister/Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission)

Split into two sittings, the thirteenth session of IPS’ series of programs ‘The Living Scripts’ was held with Engr. Dr. M Akram Sheikh (Hilal-e-Imtiaz), former Federal Minister / Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission on July 27 and 29, 2020.

The speaker, who has held several important positions during his illustrious career, said that his philosophy, personality and life struggle could be best summed up by the ‘Vision 2030 Statement for Pakistan’ which he penned down in 2005 as the head of Planning Commission of Pakistan after years of in-depth study of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s life and speeches. The statement envisioned “A developed, industrialized, just and prosperous Pakistan through rapid and sustainable development in a resource constrained economy by deploying knowledge inputs”, he shared.

Speaking of his academic life, the speaker said that he completed his B.Sc Engineering in 1962 as a Gold Medalist from UET, Lahore, following which he joined WAPDA as a Design Engineer. He then completed his MSc in Structural Engineering from Leeds University, UK, and later joined University of Calgary, Canada, as a Graduate Teaching Assistant / Phd student. After completing his Ph.D, he returned to Pakistan in 1968 and then went on to serve on many senior management positions including Federal Minister / Head of Planning Commission of Pakistan, Federal Secretary of the Ministries of Communication, Water & Power, and Industries & Production, and Managing Director/Chairman of State Engineering Corporation (SEC), Pakistan Steel Mills, Heavy Mechanical Complex (HMC) and Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC).

During his long and diverse career, Dr. Sheikh spearheaded many strategic policy initiatives and helped formulate public policies and relevant laws. His latest initiative of founding the Global Think Tank Network (GTTN) – the first University-based Think Tank of Pakistan – was the continuation of his lifelong passion to see Pakistan as a mature, confidant, tolerant, democratic, stable and a harmonious society fully integrated with the changing global economy through enhanced competitiveness, innovation and fostering knowledge economy, he added.