June 17, 2003	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 16, 1424

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PESHAWAR, June 16: The NWFP government unveiled on Monday Rs14.696 billion Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the 2003- 4 fiscal year specifying a major chunk of the ADP’s funding line to improve education, social sector and infrastructure particularly roads and canal network.

Higher allocations for the education, health and roads have been apparently made in line with the conditionalities of NWFP government’s loan agreement with the World Bank and in line with the federal government and international donor agencies’ dictates.

In line with the past, the new ADP would heavily rely on external resources as the provincial government’s contributions to the Rs 14.69 billion ADP would stand at around Rs2 billion.

A sum of Rs3.8 billion would be diverted to the ADP from the proceeds of the World Bank’s Structural Adjustment Credit (SAC) instalment — if it is released in November or December, 2003.

A sum of Rs5.37 billion would be provided by international donor agencies as financial support to the NWFP’s ADP. This amount includes Rs755 million grants and the remaining would be provided to the province as loan.

The federal government would provide over Rs2 billion — under its various development projects — to finance the development activities in the NWFP.

The new ADP would raise the total debt liability of the province to a new height as NWFP government has decided to take loans of over Rs12 billion to finance its development programme during the 2003-4 financial year.

In attempt to involve members of the provincial assembly in the development activities across the province a colossal amount of Rs1.2 billion has been earmarked for Tameer-i-Sarhad Programme (TSP) under which every MPA would be provided Rs5 million fund for carrying out development activities in their constituencies.

The unspent amount out of the Rs5 million funds provided to every member for the same purpose during the 2002-3 fiscal would be re-allocated during the next financial year.

While unveiling the new ADP, Provincial Minister for Finance, Development and Planning Sirajul Haq said that it had been designed to achieve five objectives including improvement in the education and health sectors, construction of new dams and improving of the existing irrigation system, improvement of infrastructure, promotion of private investment and raising efficiency level of the public sector institutions relating to income generation.

The new ADP reflects an over all seven per cent increase in comparison with the revised size of the out-going financial year’s ADP projected at Rs11.57 billion — over Rs2 billion less than the original size of the 2002-3 financial year’s ADP which was pitched at Rs13.6 billion.

Highest allocation involving a sum of Rs2.6 billion has been made for the education and training sector. A total sum of Rs2.1 billion has been earmarked for schemes pertaining to regional development. Whereas, an equally larger portion of the ADP resources — Rs 2 billion — has been allocated for the water related schemes.

The ADP underlines measures and introduction of basic facilities at the primary and secondary education levels to increase the number of students, both boys and girls, by 14 and 10.5 per cent, respectively, in comparison with the current situation.

The measures to be taken during the next financial year includes establishment of one each university and medical college for girls, upgrading the Khyber Medical College to the level of a university, constructions of five hostels, upgrading of 208 primary schools to the level of middle schools, upgrading of 200 middle schools to the level of high schools, establishment of 47 new primary schools and granting the level of higher secondary schools to 200 high schools.

A sum of over Rs1 billion has been earmarked for the health sector schemes. Part of the funds would be utilized to support the programmes launched to counter malaria, TB and for the control of cancer.

Treatment facilities would be improved at eight district headquarters hospitals and 65 health institutions. The other measures being taken to improve the health delivery system include strengthening of the office of the district governments’ executive health officers.

The new ADP also includes establishment of rehabilitation centres for prisoners at Abbottabad and Kohat prisons, establishment of a women crisis centre for destitute at Peshawar, setting up of social welfare centre at Bannu and D. I. Khan districts in addition to establishing Darul Amaan at Swat and Mardan districts.

A sum of Rs909 million would be spent for the uplift of existing roads. First phase of the project completing on June 30 involves construction of 180 kilometre long village roads.

Second phase of the project, to be launched during the next fiscal year, includes construction and widening of several roads in various districts of the province. Whereas, the federal government would provide funds for starting execution of Lowari tunnel.

Construction work on the Peshawar-Torkham road would also begin during the next financial year.

Funds allocated for the agriculture sector would partly be utilized to strengthen 25 farm service centres across the province, construction of 500 water courses, establishment of four hospitals for livestock in addition to extending scholarship to 600 students getting agriculture related education.

In all a sum of Rs718 million has been specified for agriculture sector, Rs114 million for drinking water and sanitation, Rs22 million for environment sector, Rs690 million for forest sector, Rs163 million for industries, Rs22 million for minority affairs, Rs99 million for the power sector, Rs4 million to carry out police reforms, Rs377 million for population welfare, Rs125 million for research and development, Rs1.1 billion for roads/buildings/highway/communication, Rs57 million for social welfare, Rs50 million for tourism, Rs75 million for urban development and Rs65 million for ST & IT.