Pakistan introduces austerity measures due to oil price hike
Kyiv • UNN
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif closed schools for two weeks and switched universities to online learning. Officials' salaries were cut, and foreign visits were banned to save money.
Pakistan has announced a series of extreme austerity measures as the conflict in the Middle East has caused a sharp rise in oil prices. This was reported by CNN, informs UNN.
Details
In an address to the nation on Monday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced that schools would close for two weeks and higher education institutions would immediately switch to online learning. At the same time, half of public and private sector employees will have to work from home and will have an additional day off per week to save on fuel.
The Prime Minister announced strict measures for civil servants and officials, such as halving the amount of fuel issued for government vehicles and reducing some salaries to cut government spending and help provide assistance to the population. Government agencies will not be allowed to purchase new furniture, air conditioners, or other items.
A complete ban on foreign visits by Pakistani officials, including the Prime Minister, is also being introduced, with the exception of those essential to national security interests.
Recall
In the Pakistani port city of Karachi, six protesters died and 20 more were injured during an attempt to storm the well-fortified US consulate complex. Later it became known that the death toll rose to 9 people.