Aviation Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique on Friday announced that the Islamabad International Airport will be outsourced for 15 years to improve its operational activities.
Speaking on the floor of the House, he sought to rubbish the perception that this was akin to privatization, stressing its purpose was to bring in proficient operators to enhance airport operations. Vowing that the outsourcing would be done through an open, competitive bidding process, he said the best bidder would then be granted the chance to operate the airport. The entire process, he claimed, would be profit-oriented, ultimately benefiting the national exchequer.
According to Rafique, the International Finance Corporation would serve as consultant. He said 12-13 companies had shown interest in participating in the bidding process and reiterated that the process would be transparent and adhere to all rules and regulations. He also clarified that the deal would extend only to the airport’s operation and would not include runway and navigation operations.
Noting that countries such as Turkey and India had both benefited from similar arrangements, he said airport at Madina in Saudi Arabia was also outsourced and delivering enhanced services to users. He said the government’s plans did not call for any layoffs, but best practices would be implemented to ensure facilities at airports were efficiently managed.
During his speech, the minister also called for the restructuring of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to address its substantial deficit, which has hit Rs. 80 billion this year and is projected to increase to Rs. 259 billion by 2030 if corrective measures are not taken. He lamented that PIA’s liabilities had climbed to Rs. 742 billion and it had only 27-28 operational aircraft.
Without restructuring, he warned, the flag carrier would collapse. As part of plans to address the deficit, he said, plans were in place to restore direct flights to the U.K., the U.S. and Europe.
Rafique also admitted that the former aviation minister’s remarks on the floor of the house—in which he had alleged a majority of Pakistani pilots had fake licenses—had created problems for the country’s aviation sector and assured lawmakers that all audits and tests had been successfully cleared.
On the railways sector, which also falls under his ministry, he said it had different dynamics to PIA and should not be privatized. Instead, he recommended, industrialists should be engaged to invest in its improvement.