Islamabad, The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), chaired by the Caretaker Federal Minister for Finance, Revenue, and Economic Affairs Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, held a meeting today to deliberate on key economic issues, including drug pricing and the import of urea fertilizer. The committee called for well-considered recommendations on drug pricing and explored government-to-government arrangements for urea import.

According to Press Information Department (PID), the ECC’s meeting saw the attendance of various ministers and senior officials from relevant ministries. A notable point of discussion was the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations, & Coordination’s proposal to increase Maximum Retail Prices (MRPs) of 262 drugs. The ECC requested a comprehensive analysis of the pricing mechanism to ensure a balance between industry needs and consumer protection, especially considering the current inflationary pressures.

Additionally, the ECC reviewed a summary from the Ministry of Industries and Production regarding the import of 200 KMT Urea fertilizer for the Rabi season. The committee favored exploring government-to-government import arrangements and decided to transfer the Cash Credit Limit and markup to National Fertilizer Marketing Limited (NFML) for this purpose, with provinces shouldering the import cost. Furthermore, the ECC approved a technical supplementary grant worth Rs. 423.726 million for the Petroleum Division’s PSDP projects, reflecting the government’s focus on the energy sector.