Insufficient budget holding up development progress: CM Sindh
Syed Murad Ali Shah says majority is spent on salaries, benefits and subsidies, leaving little for development
Sindh CM Murad Ali Shah. PHOTO: PPP
KARACHI:
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has attributed the slow progress of development projects in Sindh to a large part of the budget being spent on employees’ salaries and retirement benefits, operational expenses, grants and subsidies.
Addressing 45 officers constituting the 2019 cohort of the Training, Management and Research wing on Thursday, he said, Rs870 billion from the Rs1.2 trillion budget go to employees’ salaries and retirement benefits, operational expenses, grants and subsidies, and this is besides Rs75 billion allocated for local bodies and repair and maintenance endeavours. After this, “little room is left for carrying out development work,” the CM said. “Even then, the provincial government [somehow manages to] continue work on uplift projects through proper financial management.”
Answering a question, he also agreed that the province was lagging behind in infrastructural development due to a vast amount of resources being invested in Thar. The CM, however, was quick to add that now the government had begun development work pertaining to water, sanitation and construction of roads.
Presenting a breakdown of the development outlay of Rs284 billion, he said Rs208 billion was appropriated for projects launched by the provincial government, Rs20 billion for districts under the annual development plan, Rs51.5 billion for foreign-funded schemes, and Rs4.9 billion for projects initiated under the Public Sector Development Programme.
He further apprised the audience that 78 per cent of the funds allocated for development projects were spent on 1,853 ongoing schemes and 22 per cent on 852 new schemes in the province.
The CM brushed aside the impression that Karachi was neglected and said that 40 projects were completed in the city at a cost of Rs27.8 billion while others were underway.
Besides, giving an overall breakdown of the budget, he apprised the officers that 23.2 per cent of the budget was allocated for the education sector, 13 per cent for the health sector, 12 per cent for the home department, 2.7 per cent was to be spent on irrigation and 2.9 per cent on energy. He added that 1.2 per cent of funds from the budget were appropriated for the local government department and agriculture sector each.
Thar coal project
Later, responding to a question, the CM said that former prime minister Benazir Bhutto had envisioned the possibility of producing power via coal and “had she been allowed to lead the country, Pakistan would have been a power-exporting country today.”
Referring to the Thar coal project, he claimed that the Sindh government had worked to achieve Benazir’s ambitions, as a result of which Sindh was the only province in Pakistan that was generating electricity.
“People of Thar too have benefitted from the power project as they partnered [with the government] in the scheme and have better job opportunities,” he added.
Answering another question, the CM credited the Sindh government for the construction of two bridges across Indus River and another in Tharparkar. “We have connected the entire province, laying down a network of roads, and now people can travel anywhere [in the province] easily,” he said.
Responding to another question, he said that all basic health units (BHUs), except for the ones in Karachi and Nawabshah, were handed over to the People’s Primary Healthcare Initiative and assured that BHUs across the province were functioning smoothly.
Besides, he told the audience that the Sindh government had decided to introduce reforms for making local bodies system more effective and efficient.
Speaking about the poverty reduction strategy, the CM apprised the officers that a union council-based poverty reduction programme was initiated in 2009 and had been expanded to 18 districts. The government now plans to expand it further to cover another eight districts under the European Union-funded ‘Sindh Council and Community Economic Strengthening and Support Programme,’ worth 62 million euros.
The programme will help the people, “particularly those residing in rural areas and leding difficult live, having lowest purchasing power [in the province],” he said.
Drawing his address to a close, the CM urged the officers to serve the people of the province with sincerity and to the best of their abilities.
Sindh Chief Secretary Mumtaz Ali Shah, Finance Secretary Hassan Naqvi, Health Secretary Zahid Abbasi, Planning and Development Secretary Shireen Narejo were also present on the occasion, among others.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 31st, 2020.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has attributed the slow progress of development projects in Sindh to a large part of the budget being spent on employees’ salaries and retirement benefits, operational expenses, grants and subsidies.
Addressing 45 officers constituting the 2019 cohort of the Training, Management and Research wing on Thursday, he said, Rs870 billion from the Rs1.2 trillion budget go to employees’ salaries and retirement benefits, operational expenses, grants and subsidies, and this is besides Rs75 billion allocated for local bodies and repair and maintenance endeavours. After this, “little room is left for carrying out development work,” the CM said. “Even then, the provincial government [somehow manages to] continue work on uplift projects through proper financial management.”
Answering a question, he also agreed that the province was lagging behind in infrastructural development due to a vast amount of resources being invested in Thar. The CM, however, was quick to add that now the government had begun development work pertaining to water, sanitation and construction of roads.
Presenting a breakdown of the development outlay of Rs284 billion, he said Rs208 billion was appropriated for projects launched by the provincial government, Rs20 billion for districts under the annual development plan, Rs51.5 billion for foreign-funded schemes, and Rs4.9 billion for projects initiated under the Public Sector Development Programme.
He further apprised the audience that 78 per cent of the funds allocated for development projects were spent on 1,853 ongoing schemes and 22 per cent on 852 new schemes in the province.
The CM brushed aside the impression that Karachi was neglected and said that 40 projects were completed in the city at a cost of Rs27.8 billion while others were underway.
Besides, giving an overall breakdown of the budget, he apprised the officers that 23.2 per cent of the budget was allocated for the education sector, 13 per cent for the health sector, 12 per cent for the home department, 2.7 per cent was to be spent on irrigation and 2.9 per cent on energy. He added that 1.2 per cent of funds from the budget were appropriated for the local government department and agriculture sector each.
Thar coal project
Later, responding to a question, the CM said that former prime minister Benazir Bhutto had envisioned the possibility of producing power via coal and “had she been allowed to lead the country, Pakistan would have been a power-exporting country today.”
Referring to the Thar coal project, he claimed that the Sindh government had worked to achieve Benazir’s ambitions, as a result of which Sindh was the only province in Pakistan that was generating electricity.
“People of Thar too have benefitted from the power project as they partnered [with the government] in the scheme and have better job opportunities,” he added.
Answering another question, the CM credited the Sindh government for the construction of two bridges across Indus River and another in Tharparkar. “We have connected the entire province, laying down a network of roads, and now people can travel anywhere [in the province] easily,” he said.
Responding to another question, he said that all basic health units (BHUs), except for the ones in Karachi and Nawabshah, were handed over to the People’s Primary Healthcare Initiative and assured that BHUs across the province were functioning smoothly.
Besides, he told the audience that the Sindh government had decided to introduce reforms for making local bodies system more effective and efficient.
Speaking about the poverty reduction strategy, the CM apprised the officers that a union council-based poverty reduction programme was initiated in 2009 and had been expanded to 18 districts. The government now plans to expand it further to cover another eight districts under the European Union-funded ‘Sindh Council and Community Economic Strengthening and Support Programme,’ worth 62 million euros.
The programme will help the people, “particularly those residing in rural areas and leding difficult live, having lowest purchasing power [in the province],” he said.
Drawing his address to a close, the CM urged the officers to serve the people of the province with sincerity and to the best of their abilities.
Sindh Chief Secretary Mumtaz Ali Shah, Finance Secretary Hassan Naqvi, Health Secretary Zahid Abbasi, Planning and Development Secretary Shireen Narejo were also present on the occasion, among others.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 31st, 2020.