Committee approves 38 projects worth Rs180b

Twenty-two projects costing Rs119 billion of the 38 projects are related to the infrastructure sector.

ISLAMABAD:

The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on Tuesday approved 38 projects pertaining to the infrastructure, social and industrial sectors, which will cost Rs180.5 billion, including foreign aid of Rs75 billion.

A CDWP meeting, held under the chairmanship of Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Dr Nadeemul Haque and attended by sponsoring agencies and representatives from provincial governments and special areas, especially discussed the projects being funded by foreign institutions and were part of flood rehabilitation activities. Twelve projects will be funded by donor agencies.

Of the 38 projects, 22 projects were related to the infrastructure sector costing Rs119 billion while 13 projects were related to the social sector costing Rs59 billion. The remaining three projects costing Rs2.3 billion were related to industries and commerce.

CDWP, which is authorised to approve projects of over Rs1 billion, recommended 13 projects costing Rs170 billion to the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) for approval.

Cost of seven projects has been revised with an addition of Rs18.7 billion to the original cost of Rs13 billion.

In the area of infrastructure building, five were energy projects costing Rs33 billion. The main projects included a 747-megawatt power plant at Guddu and the renewable energy development sector investment programme.

In the transport and communications sector, six projects costing Rs77 billion were approved which included rehabilitation of Karakoram Highway at Barrier Lake, Attabad, Hunza and Gilgit-Baltistan, national highway improvement programme and reconstruction of earthquake-damaged roads.

In the water sector, the main projects included construction of Shadi Kaur Dam and restoration of flood-hit irrigation zone in DG Khan.

Main projects in the social sector included population programmes of federal, provincial and AJK governments. These were placed for approval for a period of five years (2010-15) to be funded by the federal government during the current National Finance Commission Award.

Education sector projects included reconstruction and rehabilitation of 326 flood-damaged schools and colleges in 10 districts of AJK. In the health sector, establishment of Bannu Medical College (Phase-II) was approved.

CDWP also approved projects for economic revitalisation in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Fata, which would be funded by the World Bank through Multi Donor Trust Fund in the shape of grant. It also cleared a 50-megawatt solar power pilot project with foreign assistance.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 15^th, 2011.