Pakistan and Britain on Sunday signed a ''Long-term Development Partnership Arrangement'' to reduce poverty and achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Pakistan through active partnership between the two countries.
The agreement was signed by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and British Prime Minister Tony Blair here at Prime Minister House, following the talks between the two prime ministers. Under the agreement, the British government will provide 480 million pounds in the next three years through the Department for International Development (DFID) of the UK.
The agreement will provide a long-term development partnership between Pakistan and Great Britain through a transparent framework for mutual accountability for implementation of the development partnership between the two countries.
Under the agreement, the development partnership between the two countries is based on a shared commitment to achieve the objectives to reducing poverty with the objective of achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Pakistan.
The agreement would ensure respecting relevant international human rights obligations, strengthening financial management and accountability, and reducing the risk of funds being misused.
The Pakistan government, under the agreement, would take effective steps to reduce poverty in line with the Paris Declaration (2005) and achieve high and broad based economic growth including the rural economy, while maintaining macroeconomic stability.
The agreement will also help Pakistan to take initiative so that by 2015 all children with special emphasis on girls and children in difficult circumstances have access to free primary education of good quality.
It will also help to improve levels of adult literacy by 2015, especially for women, and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults.
The agreement will also help to reduce gender disparities in education, and achieving gender equality by 2015, with a focus on girls'' full and equal access in basic education of good quality.
It will also improve health services delivery, particularly in maternal and neonatal health, besides improving provision of clean water and sanitation services.
Specific arrangements for allocating and disbursing the development assistance will be decided in separate discussions. Under the agreement, the UK will also provide financial and technical co-operation for capacity development.
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