A G N Kazi

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Aftab Ghulam Nabi Kazi was born in Sindh, Bombay Presidency, British India in 1919. His father Ghulam Nabi Kazi was a veteran educationist of Sindh who had been awarded the titles of Khan Bahadur and MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire). On the separation of Sindh from Bombay, Khan Bahadur Ghulam Nabi Kazi was appointed the first Director of Public Instructions Sindh in 1937. Aftab Kazi obtained his Masters degree in Mathematics and Physics from the University of Bombay and competed in the Indian Civil Service examination. In the meanwhile he worked on the faculty of the D J Sindh College Karachi. In 1944 he was one of the three Muslims selected to the Indian Civil Service along with Agha Shahi and Mian Riazuddin Ahmed. Thus started a career that would last for half a century making him the longest serving civil servant in the history of Pakistan.

A G N Kazi started his career as Assistant Commissioner in Bihar and Orissa but opted for Pakistan during the partition of India in 1947. He joined the Government of Sindh and held pivotal positions such as Secretary to Governor and Secretary Finance. Keeping with the traditions of all Commonwealth countries the most brilliant and efficient civil servants are assigned to the Ministry of Finance and Mr Kazi proved no exception to this rule. After the amalgamtion of all provinces in the western wing of the country in 1955, he was appointed Finance Secretary of West Pakistan. In the early sixties he was posted as Economic Minister in the Pakistan Embassy in Washington DC USA where he served until 1965. On his return to Pakistan, he was appointed for a brief period as Additional Chief Secretary (Planning nd Development) West Pakistan and thereafter as Chairman of Pakistan's Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA). It was during his tenure as Chairman WAPDA that the Mangla Dam was inaugurated and he was awarded the Sitara-i-Pakistan on the occasion. In 1969 he was appointed Secretary for Industries and Natural Resources and a year later as Finance Secretary of the Government of Pakistan. As Secretary Finance he succeeded eminent personalities such as Sir Victor Turner, Abdul Qadir, Mumtaz Hasan Hafiz Abdul Majid and M M Ahmed. He held this pivotal assignment during the unfortunate crisis of 1971.

In 1973, A G N Kazi was assigned the highest grade in the civil service and made Secretary General Finance and Economic Coordination in which capacity he had to supervise the working of all the economic ministries of the Government of Pakistan. He was appointed Advisor to the President on Economic Affairs in 1977 with the rank of a full Cabinet Minister and Governor State Bank of Pakistan in 1978. He served in the latter capacity for eight years and this period was characterized by excellent financial discipline in the banking sector coupled with good relations with the federal government.

In 1986, he was appointed Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, in which position he remained till 1993 until his induction as the Chairman, Privatization Commission. In 1994, A G N Kazi finally retired after fifty long years of service and never took up any regular government assignment. He is a well respected figure in Pakistan's economic sector having remained at the helm of the sector for around three decades, and is well known for his efficiency, integrity and dedication. His picture can be seen here: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Horse_riding.jpg