A caretaker government led by interim Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar took the oath of office today, Thursday, in Islamabad, with the possibility of new elections in November or later. Stabilizing the economy is a top priority for the government as the $350 billion economy is on a difficult recovery path after securing a last-minute $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund to avoid defaulting on sovereign debt. The economic reforms implemented so far have resulted in historic levels of inflation and rising interest rates. The biggest challenge for the caretaker government and the upcoming government remains economic stability.
Kakar himself took the oath on Monday after President Arif Alvi dissolved Parliament last week on the advice of outgoing Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif. Kakar appointed the new government on Thursday, which later took the oath before Alvi. State television later reported that the electoral commission stated that the delineation of new electoral constituencies will be completed by December 14.
The new Information Minister, Murtaza Solangi, announced that former central bank governor Shamshad Akhtar has been appointed as Finance Minister, and former Pakistani ambassador to the United States, Jalil Abbas Jilani, has been appointed as Foreign Minister. The caretaker government also includes former regional minister Sarfaraz Bugti as Interior Minister and Mashal Malik, wife of the detained Kashmiri leader Yasin Malik, as Minister for Human Rights.
