Lofty aims: Growth strategy seeks more investment in rural areas

Shahbaz says target of attracting $17.5 billion in investment .

LAHORE:

Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Saturday that development growth in the province would rise to eight per cent by 2018.

He was speaking at a ceremony organised to announce the Punjab Growth Strategy 2018 at the CM’s office. Sharif said four million jobs would be created under the strategy. He said two million youngsters would be trained in accordance with market needs in the province. Sharif said the province’s exports would rise 15 per cent every year and a target of attracting $17.5 billon in investment by 2018 had been set.

The chief minister said the strategy would be effectively implemented and no stone would be left unturned to realise the development goals. He said the Planning and Development Department had devised the best development strategy for the province in collaboration with economic experts.

Sharif said the realisation of development goals would be ineffectual without planning for the provision of potable water, health and education facilities to the people. The chief minister said planning would have to be carried out to ensure the provision of education to every child province-wide in addition to formulating plans for the energy, manufacturing and mercantile sectors.

He said experts should lend a hand in the formulation of a policy that empowers youngsters, women and minorities. Sharif said Pakistan was blessed to have a young population. The chief minister said an effective strategy ought to be formulated to empower them. He said failure to plan and create job opportunities would render all plans futile. The chief minister said this should be an integral part of the strategy. Sharif said the destiny of the province and the nation could be altered if the potential of the demographic dividend was harnessed.

He said the government had taken a number of steps in this regard. The chief minister said thousands of girls and boys had been trained under the Skill Development Programme that was being run with the assistance of the Department for International Development (DFID). Sharif said far-reaching reforms were being introduced in the health and education sectors. The chief minister said 100,000 gifted students were being educated with the Punjab Education Endowment Fund’s assistance.

Sharif said the Saaf Pani Project had been initiated to provide the people with access to clean drinking water. The chief minister said progress was being made on this front after a survey had been carried out by experts across the province. He said previous federal governments had tried to initiate such projects but failed due to financial irregularities and other concerns.

The chief minister said the nation was grateful to China for extending a $46 billon development package to Pakistan. He said out of this $30 billion would be invested in the energy sector alone. Sharif said China had made remarkable progress through hard work.

The chief minister said the nation had not been able to achieve desired results in the livestock and agriculture sectors despite having an agrarian economy. He said Pakistan was a natural green basket for the Middle East but the nation had failed to take advantage of its proximity to the region due to lack of planning.

Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal said the chief minister and his team deserved to be commended for formulating the strategy. He said the provincial government had made timely progress on the front. Iqbal said the federal government would support other provinces if they desired to follow the Punjab’s lead in this regard. He said the provincial government had set a glorious precedent by quickly completing high quality projects in a transparent manner.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 17^th, 2015.