Foreign countries funding 145 projects, Senate told

Ishaq Dar says 45 projects are on loans, 100 on grants


Our Correspondent March 08, 2017
Ishaq Dar says 45 projects are on loans, 100 on grants. PHOTO: REUTERS

ISLAMABAD: The government informed the Senate that foreign countries are funding 145 development projects countrywide, of which 45 are on loans while the rest are on grants.

Written details were submitted in the Senate on Tuesday to questions asked by lawmakers of the upper house of parliament.

To a question of Senator Nisar Muhammad about the foreign funded projects in the country, Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar replied that the projects are spread across four provinces including Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

The projects range from energy to communication, water sanitation, education and literacy, roads, infrastructure development, power, poverty reduction, health and others.

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Among the famous donors were JICA, government of Japan, Germany, Saudi Arabia, DFID, UK, EU, France and USAID.

The highest committed amount is a loan of $1,626 million for Orange Line Metro Train Project in Lahore followed by Chashma Nuclear Power Project’s units for $1,578 million in Mianwali.

Other projects include upgrading primary schools to elementary schools in Sindh and post-flood roads’ rehabilitation of national highways all over the country for $196 million from China.

Separately, to a question by Senator Shibli Faraz about annual production of car manufacturing companies in the country, Minister for Industries Ghulam Murtaza Khan Jatoi replied that local production of cars in the country had increased by 34 per cent or 46,022 units to 179,994 units from 133,972 units in 2010-11.

Jatoi said Pak Suzuki Motors, Indus Motors Limited and Honda Atlas Cars were manufacturing cars locally.

Suzuki is the leading manufacturer in the country with five brands. Its production had increased by 26,838 units or 38 per cent to 97,409 units in 2015-16 as against 70,571 units in 2010-11.

The production of the company’s most famous brand the Mehran also rose by 10,934 units or 42 percent to 36,869 units in 2015-16 as compared with 25,935 units in 2010-11.

Similarly, Toyota Indus motors produced a total of 57,474 cars in the previous fiscal year, which is 16,055 units or 39 per cent higher when compared to 41,419 units in 2010-11.

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Honda Atlas also notched up its production of cars by 9,359 units or 60 per cent to 25,061 units in 2015-16 from 15,702 units in 2010-11.

To a question asked by Senator Rahila Magsi, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal’s written reply suggested the lowest percentage of increase in Public Sector Development Programme funds since 2013-14. The figure stated that in 2013-14 there was 18 per cent increase which jumped to 24 per cent in 2014-15 and 33 per cent in 2015-16, but it declined to 14 per cent in 2016-17.

The Senate was also told that net profit after tax of National Bank of Pakistan was Rs5.5 billion, Rs15 billion and Rs19 billion in 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively. Other 34 banks have also witnessed increase in net profit of Rs193,115 million in 2015 which was Rs163,577 million in 2014.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 8th, 2017.

COMMENTS (1)

Rahul | 7 years ago | Reply He's probably 145% lying.
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