Lahore mayor assures solutions to affordable housing

Javed says private sector is being encouraged to donate land for the purpose

LAHORE: Lahore's city government, in collaboration with private partners, is devising ways to address housing problems faced by financially-disadvantaged residents of the city, said Lahore Mayor Colonel (retd) Mubashir Javed.

He was speaking to a gathering of mayors from around the world at the Chicago Forum. The mayor was among 17 officials of his rank invited by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs to share views on multifarious challenges faced by other big cities.

He said the private sector was being encouraged to donate land to build cheap housing for the poor.



In his keynote address on “Keeping Global Cities Safe and Sound Workshop”, Javed highlighted the steps taken by the Punjab and Lahore governments to enhance security in the city. He pointed out that 8,000 CCTV cameras were installed, apart from introducing a special Dolphin Force. These measures and the rapid response to any criminal activity, he said, helped bring down the city's crime rate.

The response time of the Dolphin Force was between nine and 11 minutes, he claimed.

“Another task of the government was to provide social and economic security to the youth by imparting state-of-the-art education, training and employment. Employed youth is a significant factor in shaping the safety and security of the environment in any society.”

He also spoke about measures taken by Pakistan in pushing back the tide of extremism by launching successful counter-terrorism operations in Swat, Waziristan and Balochistan. “Pakistan is one of the very few countries in the region which has successfully combated extremism.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 11^th, 2017.