CDWP okays three uplift projects worth Rs55.5bn

Published May 21, 2021
The Central Development Working Party has approved a Rs31.2bn IT park for Karachi, Rs3.4bn cancer hospital for Muzaffarabad and Rs20.8bn health project of the Sindh government. — APP/File
The Central Development Working Party has approved a Rs31.2bn IT park for Karachi, Rs3.4bn cancer hospital for Muzaffarabad and Rs20.8bn health project of the Sindh government. — APP/File

ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on Thursday cleared three development projects worth Rs55.5 billion, including a Rs31.2bn information technology scheme for Karachi.

A meeting of the CDWP, presided over by Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan, approved Rs3.4bn for a cancer hospital in Muzaffarabad, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, and recommended two other projects for approval by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec).

The cancer hospital in Muzaffarabad would be set up and operated by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) on the pattern of similar hospitals in provincial capitals and Islamabad.

The CDWP reviewed the Rs31.2bn project for establishment of IT park in Karachi and recommended its approval by Ecnec. The project to be set up and operated by the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) envisages construction of an 11-storey IT park building to be situated near Jinnah International Airport. The project is funded by the Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) to an extent of 85 per cent with a $158.5 million loan (Rs26.5bn) and Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) funding of 15pc.

Schemes include Rs31.2bn IT park in Karachi and Rs3.4bn cancer hospital in Muzaffarabad

The meeting was told that about 210 IT companies having 8,400 employees would be accommodated in the IT park. The project would be completed in six years, including four years for construction and two years for operation and maintenance support. It will then become self-sufficient through public-private partnership operations for revenue generation in the form of rentals, services and auditorium facilities and is estimated to have an economic international rate of return (EIRR) of 17.17pc. The PSEB has already leased six acres of land near Jinnah International Airport.

The meeting referred a Rs20.8bn worth of health sector project of the Sindh government to Ecnec for approval. The project “Covid-19 Response and other Natural Climes Control Programme” envisages strengthening of health and well-being system so that the public health system could be strengthened to deal with the immediate effects of infectious diseases.

The scope of the project includes civil work on a 20-bed intensive care unit, 30-bed high dependency units, six district headquarters, a 20-bed Covid ward, 23 tehsil headquarters, upgrade of six DHQs and 10 other general hospitals of Karachi and Hyderabad and Shadadpure Institute of Medical Science, installation of 13 oxygen generation plants at various hospitals. Vehicles and administrative costs will be met by the provincial government.

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2021

Follow Dawn Business on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook for insights on business, finance and tech from Pakistan and across the world.

Opinion

Editorial

Close the gap
Updated 16 Jun, 2025

Close the gap

Our imbalanced scorecard in the main shows that power development and prosperity reflect the shallowness of political claims.
Fiscal malfeasance
16 Jun, 2025

Fiscal malfeasance

IT is galling that, even in these times of economic distress, when hardship has pushed millions of ordinary...
Rochdale conviction
16 Jun, 2025

Rochdale conviction

THE recent conviction of seven men in the Rochdale grooming gang case is a hard-won moment of justice. The men, ...
Deepening conflict
Updated 15 Jun, 2025

Deepening conflict

Some media reports say that the US had shipped hundreds of missiles to Israel before the attack on Iran.
Some strides
15 Jun, 2025

Some strides

THE PTI government in KP is not known for sound public service delivery in a province whose economy has been ...
Air India tragedy
15 Jun, 2025

Air India tragedy

THE black box of the ill-fated Air India flight AI171 has been recovered, and that should reveal in the coming days...