ISLAMABAD: Prime Min­ister Nawaz Sharif said on Tuesday that reforms in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) were significant for the development of the region and an integral part of the National Action Plan (NAP) against terrorism.

Presiding over a meeting of the Fata Reforms Comm­ittee at PM House, Mr Sharif said that reforms in the tribal areas were also aimed at bringing the long-neglected region into the mainstream.

“The future of Fata will now be decided by the people of those areas. They have contributed a lot to our national cause and have rendered matchless sacrifices in the times of war and peace,” the prime minister said.

Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz, who is also head of the committee, said its members had visited all tribal agencies.

They held meetings with elected representatives, businessmen, tribal elders, educated youth and religious leaders to ascertain their views before finalising recommendations for the future of Fata.

Published in Dawn, August 24th, 2016