Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, former governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and former finance minister, died on Saturday after suffering a cardiac arrest.
President Asif Ali Zardari expressed deep sorrow and grief over Dr. Akhtar’s demise.
In a statement, the President paid tribute to her services in the field of economics and financial management and noted her contribution to strengthening economic governance in the country.
He prayed for the elevation of the ranks of the departed soul and expressed his deepest condolences to the bereaved family.
Dr. Akhtar, who served as the first woman SBP Governor, was a highly accomplished economist with an extensive national and international career spanning several decades in global financial institutions.
She assumed charge as SBP Governor on 2 January 2006 for a three-year term. She was the 14th governor of the central bank since its establishment in July 1948 and the first woman to hold the post, bringing with her extensive experience in economic policy, financial sector reform and international development.
Prior to her appointment as SBP Governor, Dr. Akhtar at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), where she held the position of Director General of the Southeast Asian Department from January 2004.
Prior to that, she was Deputy Director General of the same department and also served as Director of the Governance, Finance and Trade Division of ADB’s East and Central Asia Division.
Dr. Akhtar began his career with ADB in 1990 and rose steadily through the ranks, becoming a manager in 1998 after serving as a senior and primary specialist in the financial sector. Between 1998 and 2001, she served as ADB’s Coordinator of the APEC Finance Ministers Group and served on several internal committees, including the Reorganization Committee, the Appeals Committee, and the Oversight Committee.
During her tenure at ADB, she represented the institution at major global forums, including the Bank for International Settlements and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). She developed deep regional expertise in the financial and economic affairs of Southeast Asia, Central Asian Republics and the People’s Republic of China.
Before joining ADB, Dr. Akhtar for a decade as an economist at the World Bank’s Resident Mission in Pakistan. She also served briefly in the planning offices of both the federal and Sindh governments. Her work covered a wide range of areas, including macroeconomic analysis, monetary and fiscal policy, finance and structural reforms in key sectors such as industry and agriculture.
Her research and policy contributions included papers on Pakistan’s tax system, intergovernmental fiscal relations, poverty incidence and its dimensions, and foreign direct investment. At the World Bank, she played a key role in analyzing monetary policy, the state of the banking sector and the diversification of financial markets.
Dr. Akhtar was also closely involved in reforms of Pakistan’s financial regulatory institutions, including the restructuring of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Insurance Commission. She worked extensively with the private sector, including Pakistan’s stock exchanges, advising central banks on financial market reforms. Her expertise extended to the legal, regulatory and institutional reforms of the banking sector as well as the development of long-term financing mechanisms through bond markets.
Dr. Born in Hyderabad, Akhtar received his early education in Karachi and Islamabad. She maintained an excellent academic record throughout her career. She earned a BA in Economics from the University of Punjab in 1974, followed by an MSc in Economics from Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad.
She obtained an MA in Development Economics from the University of Sussex in 1977 and completed her PhD in Economics from the UK’s Paisley College of Technology in 1980.
She was a Fulbright post-doctoral fellow and served as a visiting fellow at the Department of Economics, Harvard University, in 1987.
Dr. Akhtar presented several research papers at international conferences, seminars and symposia. Her research interests focused on monetary and fiscal policy, banking and capital markets, international financial architecture, regulation and supervision, and industrial and corporate restructuring.
