ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) in its meeting held with Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal in the chair granted nine projects worth Rs4.72 billion of the education, culture, agricultural engineering, livestock, women development and communication sectors.
The meeting also recommended two projects of the energy and education sectors worth Rs14.64 billion to Ecnec.
The CDWP approved a project for enhancement of research facilities at the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Pattoki at a cost of Rs980.22 million. In the communication sector, it approved two projects worth Rs1.27 billion for Shangla Hill Interchange on M-3 and dualisation of the remaining portion of Sukkur bypass. A project for ‘Grow Green Gwadar and Smart’ worth Rs410m was approved.
Under the Pak-China Economic Corridor, a support project of the Ministry of Railways was also approved by the CDWP at a cost of Rs252m.
Other projects approved are: the second phase of archaeology community tourism field school project worth Rs52.53m; establishment of ‘Seerat Chairs’ in public sector universities involving Rs192m; strengthening of academic facilities at Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai University in Khairpur costing Rs712.60m; and strengthening of agricultural engineering and women development programme worth Rs843.18m.
The projects recommended to Ecnec are 500KV substation at Faisalabad west worth Rs1.1b, and the Balochistan education project costing Rs3.57b.
Addressing the meeting, Mr Iqbal said Pakistan could not afford to be left behind in the development race as other countries in the region were riding on the wave of Asian growth. “Our development strategy under ‘Vision 2025’ has brought a paradigm shift in priorities for allocation of resources,” he said.
Listing the seven priorities of the development strategy, Mr Iqbal said the first priority was to focus on human resource development and put people first in development process.
The minister said that the government was focusing on research and development, innovation and export promotion, adding that target of increasing exports to over $150bn by 2025 was a step in this direction.
