ISLAMABAD, Dec 20: The United States has called upon the government of Pakistan to complete capacity-building of the Fata secretariat and Fata Development Authority by May 2008 to qualify for financial assistance out of the $785 million aid package approved by the US Congress.

Sources said on Thursday that the government had also been asked to identify projects in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) in health, education, water supply, sanitation & rural development, agriculture, livestock, forest, fisheries, irrigation, water management, power and infrastructure sectors.

Unless these projects were identified and capacity-building of the two institutions completed, it would be difficult for the US government to release funds through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the sources said.

The sectors for economic development relating to industry, mines and mineral, trade and commerce, tourism and commerce and skill development were recently transferred to the FDA.

The USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives is launching a new programme in Fata which aims at building confidence between the government and tribal communities through a consultative approach with the objective of increasing public access to information about the government’s social, economic and political activities and policies in Fata.

The federal government has pledged $1billion to the Sustainable Development Plan prepared by the FDA and is soliciting additional funds from donors, including the US. The Fata transition initiative is considered an initial step in support of the government’s efforts to integrate Fata into the political and economic mainstream.

The sectoral focus of the community grants will depend on a consultative process.