Islamabad: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) recently sold the land, on which the Jinnah Convention Centre (JCC) is currently situated, to the Ministry of Interior – a news source reported. Following this initiative, the authorities concerned will commence with the privatisation of the said building.
On July 5, the civic agency had issued an allotment letter for 7.9 acres of the said land to the ministry against a payment of PKR 1.14 billion.
As per the report, the land will be leased for a period of 33 years – extendable for two subsequent terms of 33 years each (as per the conditions laid down by the development authority).
The convention centre was constructed in 1996 through a bridge-financing agreement – the CDA had initially provided funds for the construction work until it succeeded in securing long-term funding from the government.
A cabinet committee has been tasked with finalising necessary arrangements regarding the privatisation of loss-making entities. To facilitate this measure, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had in February constituted a holding company (Sarmaya-e-Pakistan) for at least 195 state-owned enterprises. The PM himself heads the Board of Governors (BoG), which includes three federal ministers and seven experts from the private sector.
