Muhammad Mian Soomro (; ; born 19 August 1950) is a

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

and

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

who has served as Chairman of the Senate,

Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan The caretaker prime minister of Pakistan () is the acting head of government, head of the Caretaker government of Pakistan, Caretaker Government in Pakistan following the Dissolution of parliament, dissolution of the National Assembly of Pakistan, ...

and Acting

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

. He also served as the 26th

Governor of Sindh The governor of Sindh is the appointed head of the province of Sindh, Pakistan. The office of the governor as the head of the province is largely a ceremonial position; the executive powers lie with the Chief Secretary of Sindh, Chief Secretary ...

and as Federal Minister for Privatization. Born to a native Sindhi family originally linked to the

Soomra dynasty The Soomra dynasty () was a late medieval dynasty of Sindh ruled by the Soomro tribe of Sindh, and at times adjacent regions, located in what is now Pakistan. Sources The only extant source is the ''Diwan-i Farruhi'', a Persian chronicle by ...

, he served as the chairman of the Senate from 2003 to 2009, the

Caretaker prime minister of Pakistan The caretaker prime minister of Pakistan () is the acting head of government, head of the Caretaker government of Pakistan, Caretaker Government in Pakistan following the Dissolution of parliament, dissolution of the National Assembly of Pakistan, ...

from 2007 to 2008, and the acting

president of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

from 18 August 2008 to 9 September 2008. Soomro hails from an influential Sindhi feudal family that has been active in national politics since 1923. His father, the late Ahmed Mian Soomro, was Deputy Speaker of the

West Pakistan West Pakistan was the western province of Pakistan between One Unit, 1955 and Legal Framework Order, 1970, 1970, covering the territory of present-day Pakistan. Its land borders were with Afghanistan, India and Iran, with a maritime border wit ...

Assembly and a member of the Senate and helped to establish the Senate Committee Systems. He is the grandson of another politician, Khan Bahadur Haji Moula Bux Soomro. He was

from 16 November 2007 to 25 March 2008 to oversee the 2008 General Elections and became the 5th Acting President of Pakistan upon the resignation of

Pervez Musharraf Pervez Musharraf (11 August 1943 – 5 February 2023) was a Pakistani general and politician who served as the tenth president of Pakistan from 2001 to 2008. Prior to his career in politics, he was a four-star general and appointed as ...

on 18 August 2008, both by virtue of his office of the Chairman of the Senate.

Professional career

An internationally recognised professional banker, Soomro held various top positions both at home and abroad in national and international organisations. He has also worked in important positions for major banks: *

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (Bank of America) (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in ...

* general manager and chief executive officer of International Bank of

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

* Faysal Islamic Bank of

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

* MCB Bank * Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited formally known as Agriculture Development Bank of Pakistan * Federal Bank of Cooperatives * President, National Bank of Pakistan Soomro earned great recognition for his achievements during his time with these organisations. He was also instrumental in the establishment of microcredit banking in Pakistan. He also held a position at the board of directors of

Shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

Pakistan Ltd.

Political career

Governorship

Soomro's public service role started with his appointment as the

on 25 May 2000.

Chairman of the Senate

Soomro resigned from the office of Sindh Governor on 26 December 2002 to contest the Senate elections. He was elected as a Senator on 23 February 2003 and was subsequently elected as Chairman of the Senate on 12 March 2003.

Caretaker Prime Minister

Soomro was appointed as caretaker prime minister on 15 November 2007, at the expiration of the term of the previous prime minister, Shaukat Aziz, ahead of a new parliamentary election. On 16 November, Soomro was sworn in as prime minister by President Pervez Musharraf. His term ended on 25 March 2008, when Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani was sworn in as prime minister.

Acting President of Pakistan

As required by the constitution, Soomro (in his position as Chairman of the Senate) automatically became acting President on 18 August 2008, upon the resignation of

. The

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

also required that a new President be elected by Parliament within 30 days.

Asif Ali Zardari Asif Ali Zardari (born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician serving as the 14th president of Pakistan since 2024, having held the same office from 2008 to 2013. He is the president of Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians and was the ...

was elected President and subsequently sworn in on 9 September 2008, succeeding Soomro.

Trustee of ILM Trust and Member of UMT Board of Governors

Soomro is a trustee of ILM Trust and member of UMT Board of Governors. UMT is a non-profit private-sector research university located in

Lahore, Pakistan Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is the second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and 27th largest in the world, with a population of over 14 million. Lahore is one of Pakistan ...

. In the recent QS Rankings, UMT was placed amongst the Top 500 universities of Asia.

References

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Soomro, Muhammad Mian 1950 births Living people People from Jacobabad District Muhammad Mian Sadiq Public School alumni Forman Christian College alumni Pakistani bankers Chairmen of the Senate of Pakistan Governors of Sindh Acting presidents of Pakistan Caretaker prime ministers of Pakistan Pakistani landowners Pakistani MNAs 2018–2023 Federal ministers of Pakistan