KARACHI: Interim plan to reduce poverty being finalized: Sindh Development Forum
KARACHI, Feb 14: Sindh governor, Mohammedmian Soomro, has declared that the government’s multi-pronged strategy is aimed at poverty reduction, tackling the problem of gender disparity, good governance, active involvement of the community towards developmental activities and improving the lot of the common man.
He was speaking at the inaugural session of the Sindh Development Forum 2002 held at the governor’s house on Thursday.
He stated that the present government’s strategy was to enforce complete transparency, ensuring equal rights to all and doing away with any quotas.
He pointed out that there had been no public accounts committees in the province since 1982-83, but now effective arrangements had been made.
He said the donor agencies as well as the government of Pakistan had been extending assistance to Sindh for the development of infrastructure.
Mr Soomro pointed out that due to the problem of sea intrusion, some one million acres of land had been lost during the past one and a half years.
The governor said that the provision of gas in Nooriabad Industrial Area after years of stalemate had been a major breakthrough and it was hoped that not only some of the closed units would begin operation, but some new units would come up as well.
Speaking on the occasion, federal secretary of general finance, Moeen Afzal, expressed the view that the problem of poverty was closely related to the agricultural production in the country.
Moeen said that after two years reforms things were not as bad as they once were, yet there was still muchwork to do.
The secretary said that after two years of hard work an interim poverty reduction paper was expected to be finalised in the coming month. This paper, he said, laid down key targets in areas like literacy, child mortality, maternal mortality and population control.
About the donors’ support in the post-September 11 development, Moeen said that the international atmosphere was more supportive and understanding and we were getting support on the basis of our performance. He also refereed to the increase in the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
He said the inflation rate for the first six months of the current year was around two per cent. The interest rates were declining.
He also mentioned two years of drought that had caused more water shortage than that of the last year.
Earlier, in his welcome address, the Sindh minister for finance, planning and development, Dr Hafeez Shaikh, said that the micro-economic arrangements in Pakistan were on the right track and the policies were in the right direction.
Dr Shaikh said that owing to the efforts of the government the property tax revenue in the province would increase by 25 per cent this year. He also informed that the number of taxes had been curtailed and there would be further reduction in their number. He pointed out that Sindh had successfully retired its debt liabilities.
He thanked the World Bank and the Asian development Bank for their assistance towards the organization of the Sindh Development Forum 2002 and said that we wanted to reach out and prove worthy of partnership.
In his brief remarks, country director of the World bank for Pakistan, John W. Wall, appreciated the holding of the event and assured cooperation on the part of his organization.
He said it was exciting for the donors to hear the reform actions and future plan of the government.
Marshuq Ali Shah of the Asian Development Bank said that his organization would like to expand its activities in the region and the Forum would help provide opportunity for deepening that relationship.
Sindh education minister Anita Ghulam Ali, health minister Maj-Gen (retd) Ahsan Ahmed, and chief secretary Javed Ashraf Hussain also made presentations about their respective departments.—APP
