The NWFP Governor Lieutenant General Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah (Retd) has said that no doubt the government is spending huge resources on the socio economic development in Fata yet there exist vast scope to launch long term programmes to remove sense of depravation, prevailing since long amongst the respective people as well as to enable them to join the mainstream of nation building process.
Talking to the two member team of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica), comprising Nobuyuki Yamura, and Mahmood A. Jilani, who called on him at Governor's House here on Wednesday, the governor said that in fact the government is following a comprehensive programme in this connection under which almost 500 percent increase has already been effected in the annual budgetary outlay for Fata.
In this connection, he added, after education and health which are getting 22 percent and 10 percent share respectively, agriculture and irrigation are being given top most priority for which a total of 12 percent allocations have been made available.
Responding to a point, he said that the most famous national level institution, the Nespak have identified 47 sites for the construction of small dams to meet the irrigational requirements, out of which work on six projects is already in progress whereas six more similar projects are being taken in hand shortly.
The governor also mentioned the joint US-Japanese 2.5 million dollars programme for the refurbishing and improvement of schools in Fata and stressed the need of extending more technical and financial assistance for this purpose.
In fact, he added we are equally focussing on the improvement of educational institutions in Fata apart from establishing new ones and sufficient headway has been made.
Keeping in view the prevailing low literacy rate, which, he said, is 0.5 percent amongst females in certain areas, due attention is being given in this respect to make the social change possible in the society.
In response to another point, the governor also said that the participation of people in socio economic development process at root level is being encouraged and work is already underway in certain administrative units for this purpose.
Talking about the law and order situation in Fata, the governor said except a single administrative unit, the situation is quite normal and development activities are in progress as usual in the entire Fata like other parts of the country.
The representatives of Jaica while talking on this occasion said that their organisation was already actively participating in the development activities in Pakistan specially in NWFP and expressed the confidence that sooner they would be in a position to also join hands with the government in the development of Fata as well.
They also agreed to the fact that socio economic development projects get top most priority in their programme and conceded that there existed sufficient possibility to launch similar programmes in Fata as well. Secretary to Governor Sahibzada Saeed Ahmed and Additional Secretary P&D Fata Aftab Akbar Durrani were also present on this occasion.