ECC Approves Rs 6.6b for Purchase of 30 Bullet-Proof Vehicles for SCO Summit

The committee allows Rs 5 billion for Daanish Schools Authority Fund

Business Desk

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet approved on Monday Rs12.6 billion in a technical supplementary grant (TSG) for the purchase of 30 bullet-proof vehicles to be used for movement of heads of state during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan in September 2027.

The decision was taken during an ECC meeting chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. The committee also directed authorities to reassess the requirement for additional bulletproof vehicles and determine whether further purchases would be necessary for the summit.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a permanent intergovernmental international alliance focused on regional security, politics, and economic cooperation. This year, the SCO summit was held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

Pakistan has assumed the rotating chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of State following the handover from Kyrgyzstan at the conclusion of the two-day Bishkek Summit. Pakistan will host the next summit in Islamabad in 2027.

“The ECC considered a summary submitted by the Cabinet Division seeking approval of TSG of Rs12.6 billion to purchase bullet-proof vehicles to be used during SCO Summit for movement of Heads of State…ECC discussed the proposal in detail and after due deliberation approved TSG of Rs6.6 billion for purchase of 30 bullet-proof vehicles and asked Cabinet Division to revert with additional requirement,” the statement read. “ECC directed Cabinet Division to conduct in-depth need analysis for any further demand, and bring up the case again if required,” it added.

What is SCO?

The SCO is a political, economic and international security organisation of ten member states. It focuses on political, economic, security and counter-terrorism cooperation.

The SCO is the successor to the Shanghai Five, formed in 1996 between China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan. In June 2001, the leaders of these nations and Uzbekistan met in Shanghai to announce the SCO.

In June 2017, it expanded to eight states, with India and Pakistan. Iran joined the group in July 2023, and Belarus in July 2024, according to the information available on Wikipedia.

Other summaries in ECC meeting

The ECC also considered a summary submitted by the Ministry of National Food Security & Research regarding minimum indicative prices (MIPs) of tobacco crop and revision of cess rates for FY2026-27.

“After thorough discussion, ECC found that proposal required further rationale-building; therefore, ECC deferred the agenda and directed Ministry to resubmit the proposal with justifiable analysis.”

The committee also considered a summary submitted by the Ministry of National Food Security & Research regarding recommendations of the committee constituted to resolve issues relating to export of donkey meat and hides from Gwadar Free Zone.

“The ECC approved the proposal with required safe-guards as recommended by the Ministry of National Food Security & Research,” the statement added. The ECC considered and approved the proposal of Ministry of National Food Security & Research for continuation of gas supply to FatimaFert and Agritech till September 30, 2026, under the existing arrangement.

It also approved a summary submitted by the Ministry of Federal Education & Professional Training regarding provision of Rs5 billion as seed money for the Daanish Schools Authority Fund through TSG, to be maintained under Endowment framework.

In addition to that, the ECC took progress review of Pakistan Skills Impact Bond (PSIB) and gave September 30, 2026 as deadline to Ministry of Federal Education & Professional Training for sharing substantive progress against the initiative for GoP guarantee was extended.