Islamabad, December 15, 2024: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP), chaired by Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal, approved 15 development projects worth Rs 422.704 billion during its meeting on Sunday. Six projects worth Rs 17.95 billion were approved outright, while nine projects, totaling Rs 404.754 billion, were referred to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for further review. The projects discussed during the meeting covered various sectors, including health, agriculture, governance, transport, water resources, and science and technology. The session was attended by federal and provincial representatives, including Secretary Planning Awais Manzur Sumra and members of the Planning Commission.
Among the key projects referred to ECNEC was the Khawazakhela-Besham Expressway, valued at Rs 137.711 billion, which aims to improve connectivity with a 48 km expressway featuring bridges, tunnels, and drainage systems. Another major project, the procurement and manufacture of 820 high-capacity bogie wagons and 230 passenger coaches, is valued at Rs 70.967 billion and will help upgrade Pakistan Railways’ rolling stock. A Sindh Government project, Sindh Early Learning Enhancement through Classroom Transformation, worth Rs 46.570 billion, is aimed at transforming classrooms to improve early learning. Additionally, the Sindh Coastal Resilience Project, valued at Rs 45.792 billion, focuses on climate-smart agriculture and poverty reduction in the coastal districts of Sindh. The Rawalpindi Ring Road project, revised at Rs 32.997 billion, involves the construction of a 38.3 km road to enhance connectivity in Rawalpindi. The Economic Transformation Initiative in Gilgit-Baltistan, worth Rs 26.763 billion, will focus on agriculture development and infrastructure enhancement in the region, while the Mangi Dam and Water Conveyance System project, worth Rs 18.994 billion, will improve water storage capacity.
The CDWP also approved the Social Sector Accelerator (SSA) for health, nutrition, education, youth, and gender programs, which will provide 30,000 paid internships to fresh graduates under the Prime Minister’s Youth Internship Programme. Other approvals include the Jinnah Medical Complex and Research Center project, aimed at providing specialized healthcare, and two aviation-related projects focused on improving airport infrastructure.
Minister Ahsan Iqbal emphasized the importance of timely implementation of these projects and stressed the need for dedicated program management units to ensure effective oversight.
