- CM Afridi briefs FinMin Aurangzeb on KP’s economic challenges.
- Province alleged delays in release of NFC funds for merged districts.
- KP walked out of NFC deliberations over funding formula last week.
Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb has assured full support to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for the resolution of all legitimate issues and addressing its financial challenges.
The assurance came during a meeting between Aurangzeb and KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi at the Finance Division in Islamabad on Tuesday, the Finance Ministry said in a statement.
The meeting was held in a cordial and constructive atmosphere, where the chief minister briefed the finance czar on various economic and financial challenges being faced by the province.
The finance minister said the federal government remains committed to facilitating provincial governments in addressing their financial difficulties.
The KP chief minister has alleged repeated delays by the federal government in releasing NFC funds for the merged districts of the province, a concern he has raised since taking office last year.
CM Afridi had alleged repeated delays by the federal government in releasing National Finance Commission (NFC) funds for merged districts, a concern he has raised since taking office last year.
Last week, KP walked out of the 11th NFC Subgroup-VII deliberations, opposing an “unconstitutional formula” affecting the newly merged districts and pressing for revision of the NFC resource distribution formula, The News reported.
Subgroup-VII had met to discuss the share of erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) in the federal divisible pool, amid KP’s strong objections over funding allocations.
CM Afridi had also raised financial issues with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif last month, highlighting the blockage of Rs2,600 billion for the merged tribal districts.
In January, Afridi warned the prime minister that delayed federal payments were pushing KP toward a “severe financial crisis”, stressing the constitutional guarantee of these funds.
