Yes minister: ‘Health, education sectors given priority’

Rehman said that the government had allocated record sums to the education and health sectors in the budget.

LAHORE:

Excise and Taxation Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman said on Saturday that Rs2 billion had been allocated in the annual budget to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

He was speaking to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) workers at his residence. Rehman said that the PML-N government had allocated record sums to the education and health sectors in the budget. He said that Rs274 billion and Rs122 billion had been allocated for the education and health sectors respectively. Rehman said that the government had ensured the provision of quality health services and free medicines to the underprivileged by raising the amount allocated for the sector. The minister said that people in remote areas were being provided with quality medical services through mobile health units. He said Rs1 billion had been allocated in this regard.



He said that the government had distributed solar lamps among 200,000 students province-wide last year to ensure that load shedding did not affect their education. Rehman said that the government had spent Rs2.5 billion on the initiative. He said that laptops and lamps were being transparently distributed among students this year solely on merit.

Rehman said that terrorism and unemployment could be eradicated by promoting education and providing the youth with jobs.

He stressed the need to promote socio-economic equity to foster national peace and development. The minister said that corruption and unemployment could be checked by good governance and transparency.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 9^th, 2014.