Efficient and empowered authority urged for CPEC
Islamabad
March 14, 2021
Islamabad: Speaking at a national webinar on Saturday, the experts feared that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) might become a debt trap if the authorities did not efficiently actualize the targets of the game-changer initiative. The institutions, experts and the public at large are still unclear about the scope and targets of the CPEC where the Pakistan government has committed billions of dollars to pool in on high rates of interest.
They said a fact-based narrative building is very important while the enemies and unwise friends are spreading rumours for their own vested interests and to malign the CPEC initiatives. One-window operation shall be the backbone of the agricultural and industrial phase of the CPEC which should be handled by the relevant and expert human resource.
Many development projects of the PTI government appear to benefit only the affluent
Development policy under Imran Khan is a saga of revolutionary promises and regressive outcomes. The problem is that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has not moved to direct the country’s development policy and practice to serve the ordinary.
The PTI has shown that it took over without even the minimum preparation needed to deliver what it promised. The lack of preparedness is visible in the fact of unelected experts continuing to chair taskforce meetings to go beyond the documents on Naya Pakistan Housing Programme (NPHP). The parliament has been kept away from taking control of policymaking. There was a possibility, however remote, of citizens’ participation in development policy, especially in the Punjab. It was killed by rolling back the local governments in the province in early 2019. The role of the unelected (bureaucrats, experts and contractors) in development policy has therefore grow
The year 2020 brought tough challenges due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Developing countries, including Pakistan, have already been struggling to cope with economic strain, socio-political instability and inadequate health and education facilities have been hit hard by the unexpected outbreak.
Besides a vigorous policy response by Pakistan’s government to off-set the negative impact of this pandemic, innovative solution and intensified support for primary sectors like education, health and small and medium enterprises is necessary. The government has taken various initiatives and announced relief packages for the poor; however, the severity and scale of the pandemic demands that the private sector and non-profit organisation (NPOs) should be on board to work together to respond to the daunting challenges posed by the pandemic.
NCC reviews K-P uplift projects costing $3.1b
Economic Affairs Minister Khusro Bakhtiar directs fast-tracking project execution
ISLAMABAD:
The National Coordination Committee on foreign-funded projects reviewed the progress of the on-going 30 projects of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government amounting to $3.1 billion.
According to a press release by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, these projects include transport and communication, energy, rural development, education and training apart from water and irrigation system in the province.
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar chaired the meeting of the National Coordination Committee on foreign-funded projects at Ministry of Economic Affairs.
It is pertinent to note that all these projects are being implemented with the help of development partners like World Bank, Asian Development Bank, USAID, China, UK, Saudi Fund, Germany, and France.
China and Pakistan are embroiled in their most serious disagreement relating to the Belt and Road Initiative, causing the annual bilateral summit of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to be delayed.