CDWP greenlights 16 projects with around Rs260bn investment

January 29, 2025 (MLN): The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) approved 16 development projects valued at Rs259.68 billion during a meeting chaired by Minister PDSI and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Ahsan Iqbal.

Out of these, 9 projects worth Rs27.40bn were approved by the CDWP forum, while 7 projects worth Rs 232.28bn were recommended to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for approval.

The agenda covered discussions on projects related to Education and Training, Governance, Higher Education, Mass Media, Physical Planning and Housing, Power, and Transport and Communications.

The meeting was attended by Secretary Planning Awais Manzur Sumra, VC PIDE, Members of the Planning Commission, as well as respective Federal Secretaries, heads of Provincial and P&D representatives from Federal Ministries and Provincial Governments. 

Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission and Minister PDSI, Ahsan Iqbal, delivered the opening remarks at the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) meeting.

He highlighted the government's vision to transform Pakistan into a knowledge economy through the "Uraan Pakistan" initiative.

Highlighting the challenges in education, he stated, that over 25 million children in the country are out of school, according to the press release.

The Federal Government, in collaboration with the Provinces, will implement measures to improve the education sector, including the establishment of Danish Schools in remote areas, he added.

The Minister stressed the collective responsibility of all stakeholders in driving national development.

He also paid tribute to Pakistan’s sports talent, declaring Arshad Nadeem a national hero.

He remarked, “Despite limited resources, Arshad Nadeem has made the nation proud by winning a gold medal. 

In recognition of his achievements, the government is approving the establishment of the 'Arshad Nadeem/Shahbaz Sharif High-Performance Sports Academy' at the Jinnah Sports Complex in Islamabad.

The academy aims to nurture more athletes like him, empowering them to represent Pakistan on the global stage.

Ahsan Iqbal emphasized the importance of monitoring and implementation for national progress.

He directed his Ministry to ensure the completion of all development projects, excluding incomplete PC-I and returning them to the Ministries without any delays.

The CDWP approved five projects, including the “Establishment of Daanish School at Gilgit Baltistan (Kros Thang Mouza Sarfaranga – Shigar)” worth Rs2,962.813mn, the “Establishment of Daanish School at Gilgit Baltistan (Sultanabad Jutal)” worth Rs3,004.133mn, and the “Establishment of Daanish School at Azad Jammu Kashmir (Bhimber)” worth Rs2,999.045mn.

Additionally, the “Construction of Cadet College Kharan (2nd Revised)” was approved, valued at Rs2.945mn.

These approvals followed a thorough discussion.

The forum referred “The Prime Minister’s Pakistan Fund for Education (Pak-PEF),” a significant initiative in the Education & Training sector, to ECNEC for further consideration.

With a total worth of Rs14,000mn, the project would be financed through the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP).

A key governance project, titled “Enhancing Public-Private Partnerships in Pakistan (Provincial Support) Project for Sindh – Revised,” worth Rs27,853.845mn, was also referred to ECNEC.

The CDWP okayed a project related to Higher Education namely “Pak-USAID Merit and Need Based Scholarships Program (Phase-II)” worth Rs2954.808mn.

It also approved a project related to Mass Media namely “Establishment of Arshad Nadeem/ Shehbaz Sharif High-Performance Sports Academy at Pakistan Sports Complex, Islamabad (Prime Minister’s Directive)” worth Rs2678.545mn.

The CDWP also referred three projects from the Transport & Communications sector to ECNEC.

The first project is the “Sindh Flood Emergency Rehabilitation Programme (SFERP-I)” worth Rs88,404mn.

The second project is the “Dualization of Rawalpindi-Kahuta Road (28.4 km), including a 4-lane bridge over Sihala Railway Pass, Sihala Bypass, and Kahuta Bypass, along with land acquisition, affected properties compensation, and utility relocation,” worth Rs23,545.021mn.

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