PM stresses SMEs, housing, agriculture as top priorities

November 03, 2026 (MLN): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the Finance Ministry not to show any leniency towards banks delaying loans under government initiatives, saying that promoting small and medium enterprises (SMEs), housing and agriculture to strengthen the economy and create jobs for youth is among the government’s top priorities.

He was chairing a review meeting on access to finance for the SME, housing and agriculture sectors in Islamabad.

He appreciated banks that have performed well in lending to these sectors and urged all banks, as key players in private-sector development, to extend the same cooperation to priority sectors that the government and its institutions extend to the banks, said a press release issued.

Shehbaz Sharif said SMEs have tremendous potential to boost economic growth, raise exports and generate employment.

He described agriculture as the backbone of the economy and said the government is working to increase exports through value addition of agricultural products.

He added that the Apna Ghar Scheme will also support several industries linked to housing and construction.

He directed the Finance Minister to resolve the financing issues of stakeholders in the SME, agriculture and housing sectors and to formulate a comprehensive strategy.

He also instructed the SBP and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to jointly address the tax-related issues of SMEs and exporters, and called for a comprehensive risk coverage strategy to make loans easier for SMEs to access.

The meeting was informed that the SBP is working on three pillars to enhance lending to priority sectors: improving regulations, sharing risks and costs between the government and banks, and promoting digital facilities.

It was told that the SME Connect digital portal (smeconnect.sbp.org.pk) has recently been launched so entrepreneurs can apply for loans and track their applications.

The participants were told that government risk-sharing and credit guarantee measures are in place for the housing, agriculture and SME sectors. Work is also under way to simplify loan procedures, cut the number of required documents and improve access to financial resources.

The meeting was also briefed on the performance indicators of commercial banks in all three sectors.

Financing under the three priority areas, as presented at the meeting, is as follows:

The apprised data on the Apna Ghar Programme is as of the 23rd of last month, and targets have been set to raise both agriculture and SME financing to Rs 1,500bn by the end of fiscal year 2027.

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