Islamabad: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has given the go-ahead to eight major development projects, with a total value surpassing PKR 144 billion, as reported on September 4.
As per details, this decision was announced during a meeting chaired by Minister for Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal, in Islamabad today. Of the eight projects, five have been directly approved by the CDWP, amounting to PKR 15.35 billion. Additionally, the CDWP has recommended three projects, valued at PKR 129 billion, to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for further consideration.
Among the approved initiatives is the “Reaching Out of School Children in AJK” project, an educational endeavor with a budget of PKR 7.18 billion. In the health sector, the “Establishment of Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cancer Treatment & Research” in Lahore, with a cost of PKR 52.77 billion, has been recommended to ECNEC. This project is planned to be funded through the Provincial Annual Development Program (ADP).
The CDWP also approved four key projects in the higher education sector. These include the “Establishment of National Center of Artificial Intelligence (Revisited)” with a budget of PKR 1.85 billion, the “Establishment of National Center of Excellence in Big Data and Cloud Computing (Revised)” costing PKR 2.38 billion, the “Establishment of National Center in Robotics and Automation (Revised)” valued at PKR 2.04 billion, and the “Establishment of National Center for Cyber Security (Revised)” with an allocation of PKR 1.88 billion.
In the transport and communications sector, the “Sindh Flood Emergency Rehabilitation Project Phase-II,” with an estimated cost of PKR 61.3 billion, has been recommended to ECNEC and is proposed to be financed through a World Bank loan. Additionally, the “Kachhi Canal Project Restoration of Flood Damages 2022,” which costs PKR 14.7 billion, has also been recommended for further consideration by ECNEC.
