President Zardari constitutes 11th National Finance Commission

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has officially constituted the 11th National Finance Commission (NFC) under the Constitution’s Article 160, ARY News reported.

The commission will play a crucial role in shaping fiscal federalism and ensuring equitable financial allocations across the federation.

According to the notification on the 11th National Finance Commission issued by the Ministry of Finance, Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb will serve as Chairman.

Finance Ministers of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan are appointed as ex-officio members.

Each province has nominated one expert member, including Nasir Mahmood Khosa for Punjab, Dr Asad Sayeed for Sindh, Dr Musharraf Rasool Cyan for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Farman Ullah for Balochistan.

The National Finance Commission (NFC) is tasked with advising the president on several key fiscal responsibilities as outlined in Article 160(3) of the Constitution.

These include the allocation of net federal tax proceeds between the federation and the provinces, the formulation of grants-in-aid from the federal government to the provinces, the determination of borrowing powers for both the federal and provincial governments, the financial oversight of national and trans-provincial projects, and any additional fiscal matters referred to it by the president.

The Finance Division will serve as the secretariat for the NFC under the Rules of Business, 1973.

The previous (10th) NFC was formed in July 2020 and was dissolved with the formation of this new body.

It is to be noted here that the seventh NFC Award remained in effect for nearly 15 years, far beyond its intended five-year term, due to persistent disagreements between the centre and provinces over a revised revenue-sharing formula.

Earlier, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Senator Ishaq Dar, addressing the media in London, indicated Pakistan’s commitment to constitutional stability, stating, “We do not need the 27th constitutional amendment as we have already absorbed the 26th one.”