ISLAMABAD:

The federal government on Tuesday cleared six more development projects worth Rs218.5 billion,
including two Karachi-based mass transit projects funded by international creditors.

The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) approved two

projects worth Rs3.33 billion and recommended four schemes costing
Rs215.2 billion to the Executive Committee of National Economic
Council (Ecnec) for approval, according to a statement issued by the
planning ministry.

The CDWP has the mandate to approve up to Rs3 billion schemes and
projects costing more than that are referred to Ecnec for final
endorsement. Headed by Planning Commission Deputy Chairman
Jehanzeb Khan, the CDWP deferred approval for six projects including
two schemes of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and one
Gwadar project.

The project sanctioning authority took up two mass transit schemes of

Karachi – for the second time in the past four months. It recommended
the Asian Development Bank-funded Bus Rapid Transit – Red Line – to
Ecnec for approval at a cost of Rs78.6 billion. However, the World
Bank-funded Karachi Urban Mobility project – Yellow Line – was
conditionally referred to Ecnec at a cost of Rs61.5 billion.

10 more state units picked for privatisation

Ecnec on Thursday will take up the Red Line project while the Yellow
Line scheme will be vetted by a planning ministry committee before
sending it to Ecnec – a body of the constitutionally formed National
Economic Council (NEC).
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has also set up the
National Development Council, which is parallel to NEC, but it does not
have constitutional cover.

The cost of the Red Line project increased 19.3% or Rs12.7 billion in the
past one year due to currency depreciation. In May last year, the
project’s cost had been estimated at Rs65.6 billion.

Pakistan will get $575 million in loan to build the Red Line bus transit
system in Karachi, which will facilitate 300,000 commuters every day
in the country’s largest metropolis.

As part of the $575-million financing envelope, the Asian Development

Bank (ADB) last month approved a $235-million loan for the bus rapid
transit (BRT) system. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and
the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) are also providing $100
million each for financing the project’s civil works and equipment cost.

CDWP approves Rs32.5b worth of 15 projects

The Karachi Transformative Strategy of the World Bank has put
infrastructure needs of the city at $9-10 billion over the next 10 years.
Such a financing was required to improve urban transport, water
supply, sanitation and municipal solid waste treatment.

The Karachi Bus Rapid Transit Red Line project will provide a 26.6km
corridor and associated facilities benefiting 1.5 million people (10% of
Karachi’s population) who live within a kilometre of a Red Line station.

In April this year, the CDWP had conditionally cleared the Red Line
project, subject to rationalisation of the cost and other issues raised by
the Ministry of Planning and Development.
The World Bank has approved $382 million for construction of a 21km
long yellow corridor in Karachi.

Karachi Yellow Line project will need Rs1.7 billion annual operational
subsidies. In May this year, the CDWP had also considered the Yellow
Line project for approval. It recommended the project subject to the
condition that its cost and scope will be rationalised.

The CDWP had also given directives for operationalising the Green Line
Karachi project and integrating all mass transit schemes in the city
under one mass transit authority for operation and maintenance
purposes.

But the government of Sindh did not give response to these

observations raised by the CDWP in May this year.

Six development projects approved

The planning ministry statement said two projects related to health
were presented in the CDWP meeting. First project Sehat Sahulat
Programme, which is now named as Prime Minister’s National Health
Programme phase-II, worth Rs31.9 billion was referred to Ecnec for its
nod.

This scheme has been built upon former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s
health scheme.

The CDWP approved the establishment of a safe blood transfusion

service in the Islamabad Capital Territory at a cost of Rs102.9 million.

It referred the construction of Peshawar Torkham Motorway as part of

the Khyber Pass Economic Corridor project worth Rs41.4 billion to
Ecnec. This scheme is also funded by the World Bank.
The CDWP also approved the construction of the AJK Legislative
Assembly Complex at a cost of Rs2.9 billion. It seems the project cost
has been deliberately put below Rs3 billion to avoid Ecnec’s approval.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 28th, 2019.

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