ISLAMABAD, March 21: Pakistan and the United Kingdom on Tuesday signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) to develop a long-term development partnership between the two countries, especially focusing on alleviating poverty. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz signed the LOI in Islamabad which had been inked by his British counterpart Tony Blair in London.

The agreement will cover UK grant assistance of 235 million pounds (approximately 400 million dollars) over a period of three years.

The development partnership between the Pakistani government and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) will target poverty alleviation, create income-generating opportunities for the poor and improve services delivery.

“The long-term commitment signifies the confidence the British government has in our policies to reduce poverty,” Prime Minister Aziz said after the signing ceremony attended by British High Commissioner Mark Lyall Grant, Minister of State for Finance Omer Ayub Khan and Minister of State for Economic Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar.

The partnership also indicated the British government’s commitment to help Pakistan achieve better healthcare, better education, empowerment of women and in fighting hunger and disease, he added.

Mr Aziz said the country’s economy was on the rise and the government was working to pass on the benefits of high growth to the grass-roots level. This was already happening, he said while referring to the 6.5 per cent reduction in poverty level.

He said that as a majority of the country’s population lived in rural areas, the one good way to fighting poverty was through increasing level of agriculture income.

The government, he added, was working on a host of programmes to help farmers increase their income through major and minor crops, fisheries etc that in turn would help the country move forward on the road to progress and prosperity.

Prime Minister Aziz described the DFID as an excellent partner of Pakistan in its efforts to alleviate poverty and promote development.

He also thanked the British government for the earthquake relief assistance and its commitment to help Pakistan in rehabilitation of people ravaged by the October 8 earthquake.

British High Commissioner Grant said the signing of the agreement indicated his country’s long-term commitment and keenness to work closely with the Pakistani government to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

He said the government’s policies were leading to reduction in poverty and the British government wanted to help Pakistan achieve the desired goals.—APP