Born into a highly educated family of Allahabad, UP, Jaffery studied at Allahabad University, which was often referred to as "Oxford of the East" during its "Golden Age" (1921-50), with economics and English his main subjects before his father, a colonel in the Indian Army's Medical Corps, opted for Pakistan in 1947.
Belonging to the first batch of Civil Service of Pakistan, Jaffery served on various key positions in his career spanning five decades. The various positions he held included the posts of secretary in commerce, planning and industries, Pakistan ambassador in Brussels, governor State Bank of Pakistan (9th SBP governor, he was preceded by A G N Kazi and succeeded by Imtiaz Alam Hanafi), Chairman Banking Islamization Commission, Executive Assistant to the then President, Ghulam Ishaq Khan, and Advisor on Finance with the rank of federal minister to the then Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, in her two terms.
Although, Jaffery was one of the three men (the other two being President Ghulam Ishaq Khan and Foreign Minister Sahibzada Yaqub Ali Khan) who were thrust upon Benazir Bhutto by the Establishment during her first tenure following her party's victory in the 1988 general elections, he endeared himself so much to her that she made him the Advisor on Finance when she got re-elected as prime minister in 1993.
Her decision to rely on a former bureaucrat who was widely known as Ghulam Ishaq Khan's confidant than identify and groom someone from the party also lends credence to the argument that the party traditionally lacked people having required qualification and experience to head finance ministry.
The shortage of finance talent was so acute that even Dr Mubashir Hasan, who is considered one of the most competent Finance Ministers the PPP ever had, could not carry out his reforms properly. More importantly, he found little favour for himself in the West because of his 'semi-socialist' or 'flawed' model of economy and his strong Marxist or Socialist leanings.
The present PPP-led coalition government has thrown up four finance ministers-Ishaq Dar, Naveed Qamar, Shaukat Tareen and Dr Hafeez Shaikh-since its victory in February 2008 election. However, three of them do not belong to the PPP. Although, Jaffery was no Dr Mubashir, he found his job during her second term increasingly challenging and complex because of a variety of factors. It was in December 1988 that Pakistan entered into a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) and a Structural Adjustment Facility Commitment agreement with the Fund.
Since then, nine more loan arrangements (including the recent IMF loan of $7.6 billion in 2008) have taken place under various IMF facilities/programmes. Almost six loan arrangements were made during the two tenures of Benazir Bhutto including stand-by arrangements (SBAs), Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP), Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) and Extended SAP.
Certain issues in relation to IMF SBA following the receipt of over $800 million through PTCL GDR sale gave birth to some serious differences between Mohammad Yaqub (Governor State Bank from 1993 to 1999) and him, forcing him to decide whether or not he should continue with Benazir Bhutto as Adviser on Finance in her second term.
Those were the days when IMF programme had gone off the track because of a serious lack of fiscal consolidation (a situation very much present even today) as the Fund was not willing to buy Pakistan's argument that the pace of fiscal reforms was only a slow ride. The relationship had gone so sour that Jaffery sent his resignation to Benazir Bhutto while he was still in the US. Known for his high level of integrity, perseverance and intelligence, Jaffery was seen as a highly cultured economic manager.
Although, the then Planning Commission chairman who later became Finance Minister, Dr Mahbub-ul-Haq, and Jaffery were rarely found on the same page in relation to country's key economic and financial matters, Haq was greatly impressed by his distinctive and individual gesture or trait and traditional values that he represented through his conduct and demeanour. Jaffery would be often referred to as "the white-hair lady" by an over-awed Haq.