The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a soft-loan of over Rs 11 million for restructuring of technical education and vocational training system in NWFP that would be made part of the new budget of next financial year 2005-06 in case of timely provision from the ADB.
ADB Director (Operations Co-ordination for South Asia) Richard W.A. Vokes, while approaching NWFP Senior Minister Siraj-ul-Haq, who also holds the portfolio of the provincial finance minister, said this loan of $11 million was in fact sanctioned in BoD meeting of ADB on December 14 last, but the NWFP government and the Economic Affairs Division of the federal government were then being formally and in writing informed after completion of the codal formalities.
He asked for ensuring representation of the NWFP government in the loan-signing ceremony in this respect.
Siraj-ul-Haq, while appreciating the role of the ADB in providing soft-credits for accelerating pace of development in NWFP, said the MMA government was keen to promote technical education and vocational training side by side with the higher education in view of the prevailing high rate of poverty, backwardness and unemployment in the province.
He said: "We want our youth should be duly equipped with technical and vocational skills to let them promote cottage and medium-sized industries on the pattern of Punjab and Sindh to break the economic, trade and commerce stagnancy in the region and overcome poverty especially unemployment on sustainable basis.
It is worth mentioning here that ADB is the main donor agency for initiating mega developmental projects in NWFP. It has sanctioned a handsome loan of Rs 8,300 million for launching two new mega projects in NWFP besides, ensuring non-stop provision of loans amounting to Rs 24,208.954 million for 16 ongoing projects for current fiscal year after expressing full satisfaction on pace of work on these schemes.
The new multi-dimensional projects included; Road Sector Development and Sub-regional Connectivity Project and Restructuring of Technical Education and Vocational Training System in NWFP.
The ongoing projects included Chashma Right Bank Irrigation Project (Phase-III), Pehur High Level Canal Project, NWFP Forestry Sector Project, National Drainage Programme, Emergency Assistance for Drought Impact Mitigation, Second Flood Protection Project, Agriculture Sector Programme, Barani Area Development Project (Phase-II), NWFP Urban Development Project, Malakand Rural Development Project, Middle School Project, Technical Education Project, Second Girls Primary Education Project, Second Science Education Project, Reproductive Health Project and Women Health Project.
Decisions to this effect were made in a high-level Project Review Reforms Meeting chaired by NWFP Senior Minister Sirajul Haq at Civil Secretariat, Peshawar, some 10-day back held with the visiting five-member high-powered mission of the Asian Development Bank led by Sang Patamang.
Siraj-ul-Haq thanked ADB for clear assurance of providing loan amounts for timely and quality completion of ongoing mega projects in agriculture, forestry, irrigation, communications, works, water supply, local government, rural development and other social sectors.
He said it would help in enhancing environment of mutual confidence building among the NWFP government, its people and the international financial institutions.
In that meeting with ADP Mission, the Senior Minister had constituted a committee headed by Additional Chief Secretary to ensure close co-ordination with Wapda for implementation on projects of irrigation in the province.
It was also decided that ADB would review implementation on ongoing projects on periodic instead of annual basis while the audit procedure would also be improved accordingly to timely remove bottlenecks in completing the developmental projects within stipulated period.