January 13, 2007	Saturday	Zilhaj 22, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 12: The Senate chairman Mohammedmian Soomro on Friday said the government was giving priority to social sector development particularly health and education, and community participation in this regard was being encouraged.

He was Talking to the Regional Director of World Health Organization (WHO), Dr Hussein A. Gezairy, who called on him at his residence here on Friday. He was accompanied by Dr Khalif Bile Mohamud, WHO Representative in Pakistan.

Mr Soomro particularly referred to government’s focus on involving elected representatives of the people in implementing health and hygiene schemes particularly in the rural areas of the country.

Supply of clean drinking water, sanitation, vaccination and basic health and hygiene are the major areas of government attention.

He said that the spending on public health has lately registered a sharp increase. Similarly, soft loans and micro credit are being encouraged as a means of generating greater employment opportunities and poverty alleviation especially for the females.

The government, he said, believes that peer pressure alone is instrumental in ensuring the repayment of loans. He also referred to the experience of Bangladesh’s Grameen Bank in this regard.

Matters relating to complete eradication of polio from the country also came under discussion during the meeting. The WHO Regional Director commended country‘s performance and high-level of commitment to make Pakistan a polio-free country.

The chairman lauded the role of WHO in overall improvement of health facilities and extending medicare to the bulk of the population and said that the country would continue to strive for optimum utilisation of the funds being received from the Organization.