Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif will be visiting London on a six-day tour to the United Kingdom starting July 3 to negotiate trade and economic assistance agreements with the British government, taking advantage of a right newly granted to the provinces under the 18th Amendment to the constitution.
A source familiar with the chief minister’s plans told The Express Tribune that the 20-member delegation is expected to seek agreements on trade and investment with the UK, as well as the British government’s assistance on development projects in the province including those affecting transportation, healthcare and education.
“Initially it will be an exploratory trip,” said a senior official of the Punjab government, adding “we may sign some memoranda of understanding with the government and the public sector in the UK.”
Punjab officials are likely to address the issue of terrorism with British officials. Sources say that Lahore will try to link economic assistance to Punjab with London’s goals of countering the threat of terrorism.
“Poverty and joblessness among the youth is being exploited by the different terrorist outfits,” said the government official. “The Punjab government is planning to address this problem with the cooperation of the United Kingdom.”
The British government is expected to host a briefing on terrorism for the visiting delegation from Punjab. British High Commissioner Adam Thomson met with Sharif on Friday to discuss the chief minister’s upcoming visit.
Punjab has been the most active province thus far in utilising many of the new powers and resources given to provincial governments after the 7th National Finance Commission award and the 18th Amendment. Sharif went to Beijing on a five-day trip in April and signed six agreements with China, including securing Chinese assistance in the $1.7 billion Lahore Mass Transit project and a 120-megawatt power project on the Taunsa Barrage.
The new-found provincial autonomy has resulted in an all-out competition between the provinces to develop better infrastructure – both physical and regulatory – than each other. Sindh, for example, announced a 7-year development plan last week that is geared entirely towards upgrading the province’s infrastructure to compete with Punjab’s.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 20th, 2011.
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