Key points
- Infrastructure projects see cost hikes
- Allocation exceeds annual budget
- Projects include poverty alleviation initiatives
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has approved 13 development projects worth over Rs1.275 trillion across key sectors, including transport, communications, railways, space technology, and public infrastructure.
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC), the country’s top project approval authority, met in Islamabad with Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar in the chair, which approved these projects.
According to state broadcaster, these projects include economic transformation in Gilgit-Baltistan aimed at poverty alleviation, as well as flood rehabilitation initiatives in Sindh to restore critical infrastructure.
Pakistan Railways’ procurement of high-capacity wagons and passenger coaches, Pakistan’s Optical Remote Sensing Satellite project and several major road projects were also assented.
Sustainable development
The deputy prime minister reiterated the government’s commitment to sustainable development, inter-provincial connectivity, and economic transformation.
According to The Express Tribune, many of the projects were already under implementation but have seen significant cost escalations.
Among them is the construction of a new federal-funded motorway in Punjab, costing Rs436 billion.
ECNEC sanctioned these projects, including major infrastructure developments and a satellite initiative.
The Rs1.3 trillion allocation reportedly exceeds this year’s annual federal development budget, with some new projects also receiving provincial funding.
Lahore-Sahiwal-Bahawalnagar Motorway
According to a statement issued by the Deputy PM’s Office, among the most significant approvals was the Lahore-Sahiwal-Bahawalnagar Motorway, stretching 295 kilometres.
Initially approved in August 2023 for Rs264 billion, its cost has now increased by 65 per cent to Rs436 billion, according to The Express Tribune.
The National Fiscal Pact, signed under the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s directives, prohibits such projects from being federally funded.
In January, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif instructed the Punjab government to finance at least half of the motorway’s cost, but no final decision has been made.
ECNEC was informed that 90 per cent of the land acquisition for Package-I of the motorway is complete.
The National Highways Authority (NHA) has been permitted to commence construction from Lahore Ring Road to Raiwind-Kasur Road Interchange through Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) funds, based on the originally approved PC-I.
