Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday appreciated the collective efforts of federal and provincial governments and relevant institutions in implementing the fuel subsidy scheme, which has now crossed 10 million direct beneficiaries. He announced that Minister of State for Information Technology Shaza Fatima Khawaja would receive a national award in March in recognition of her contribution, while other officials involved in the initiative would be presented with shields.
Addressing a ceremony held to acknowledge the efforts of ministers and officials, Shehbaz said the scheme had faced challenges during the planning stage but expanded through coordinated efforts. He confirmed the programme would continue, with the government having allocated Rs75 billion for the initiative.
According to figures shared by the prime minister, more than 10.8 million citizens have registered for the scheme, with approximately 27 million fuel subsidy tokens issued. About 19.4 million tokens have been redeemed, while 9.2 million citizens have used tokens more than once.
Motorcyclists account for nearly 96 per cent of beneficiaries. The prime minister estimated that, with an average household size of five, about 50 million people are benefiting directly or indirectly.
Eligible beneficiaries include motorcyclists, rickshaw and Qingqi operators, and owners of cars with engines up to 800cc. He thanked provincial governments and chief ministers for their cooperation, acknowledging the contributions of Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Shaza Fatima, and institutions including the Petroleum Division, Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and telecommunications operators.
In a separate meeting with heads of commercial banks, the prime minister was informed that housing loans worth Rs426 billion had been approved under the Apna Ghar Programme, but only Rs76 billion had been disbursed against a target of Rs700 billion to support the construction of 125,000 housing units.
He stressed that the gap between approvals and disbursements must be reduced. The SBP was directed to simplify the process, while consultations are under way on a framework to facilitate developers' access to financing.
The meeting was told that Rs1,137 billion in loans had been provided to around 350,862 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The government aims to increase SME lending to Rs1.5 trillion and the number of beneficiaries to 565,000 by June 2027.
Agricultural lending reached Rs1,352 billion by the end of September 2026, benefiting 3.45 million people, with plans to raise the volume to Rs1.5 trillion for 4.5 million farmers by June 2027. Shehbaz described SMEs as the backbone of the economy, stating that improved access to finance for businesses, farmers, and homebuyers would support employment and productivity.