PM-elect Imran Khan on Saturday took oath as the 22nd prime minister of Pakistan at a ceremony held at the President House, Dawn News reported.

Khan was administered his oath by President Mamnoon Hussain.

As the ceremony concluded, Khan proceeded to the Prime Minister’s Office, where he was presented a guard of honor, Dawn News reported.

The oath-taking ceremony, which was scheduled to begin at 9:30am, started a little after 10am.

Clad in a black sherwani, the prime minister-elect arrived at the Aiwan-e-Sadr (the President House) in Islamabad from his Banigala residence. His wife Bushra Imran had already arrived for the ceremony.

The ceremony commenced with the national anthem, followed by recitation of verses from the Holy Quran.

High-profile guests including caretaker Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk, National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan and Naval Chief Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi were present at the ceremony.

Other notable guests present at the Aiwan-e-Sadr included senior PTI leaders, former Indian cricket star Navjot Singh Sidhu, cricketer-turned-commentator Rameez Raja, legendary paceman Wasim Akram, newly elected Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervez Elahi, singers Salman Ahmed and Abrarul Haq, actor Javaid Sheikh and former National Assembly speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza, Dawn News reported.

After the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) emerged as the biggest parliamentary party in the wake of the July 25 polls, all 120 of the party’s parliamentary committee members rubber-stamped Khan’s candidacy for the post of the prime minister.

The party formed enough alliances and recruited enough independents to gain the numbers required to get Khan elected as the PM in Friday’s parliamentary vote, according to Dawn News.

He will face a myriad of challenges including militant extremism, water shortages, and a booming population negating growth in the country, among others.

Most pressing is a looming economic crisis, with speculation that Pakistan will have to seek a bailout from the International Monetary Fund.m, reported Dawn News.

Khan will also have to contend with the same issue as many predecessors: how to maintain a power balance in civil-military relations, the report read.