ISLAMABAD, Aug 09 (APP): Proudly presenting the 16-month ‘achievements’ of his ministry, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday said the country stood on its feet with dignity through progress in a just short span of time.
The launching ceremony of the “Performance Report of the Planning Ministry from April-2022 to August-2023″ was held at the packed auditorium of the ministry on the last working day of the minister.
It was attended by the members of the Planning Commission, technical staff and all officers of the ministry, a news release said.
The 29-page report contains comprehensive achievements of the ministry from April 19, 2022 to August 9, 2023.
During the period, the Planning Commission managed to hold 33 meetings of the Central Development Working Party (CDWP), while 12 meetings of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) were held.
A large number of development projects and schemes of strategic significance were considered and approved during the period, said the report.
It emphasized that during the period under review special attention was given to the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) and the Planning Ministry increased the PSDP from Rs 500 billion to Rs 1,150 billion for 2023-2024, overcoming financial limitations while ensuring transparency through the PSDP Portal, which provides digital access to 1.1 trillion worth of PSDP data.
While highlighting the performance of the CDWP, the report said, the CDWP projects that were approved, showed the sensitization of priorities. After the infrastructural projects, the major emphasis had been laid on the projects of human resource development.
It further said since April 2022, the Planning Ministry placed special emphasis on youth empowerment and inclusive development. Several strategic initiatives undertaken by the Ministry and announced as part of the PM’s Youth Development Programme were enumerated in this section.
Under the Youh Development Programme, six initiatives were on education, four centered around engagement and opportunities, and two each for employment and entrepreneurship.
Similarly, the report said, National Top Talent Scholarship Programme would provide the Pakistani students with Masters and Ph.D. degrees in the top 25 universities of the world, for which Rs 4.7b had been allocated.
The establishment of Centres of Excellence on Emerging Technologies, the National Centre for Nano-Technology, the National Centre for Quantum Computing and the National Institute of New Manufacturing was a great success of the Planning Ministry.
Furthermore, the establishment of the National Growth Centre would help in increasing the country’s growth, the report added.
Despite an already ailing economy, the Ministry conducted the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) and devised a resilient relief, rehabilitation, and reconstruction (4RF) framework.
It resulted in pledges of $10 billion from international donors during an international conference on Climate Resistant Pakistan in Geneva on January 9, said the report.
The report highlighted that on November 12, 2022, a pioneering initiative worth Rs 40 billion was launched, targeting 20 underdeveloped districts. This marked the Federal Government’s first-time intervention to uplift impoverished districts, addressing economic disparities.
Simultaneously, the Planning Ministry reconstituted the Advisory Committee to enhance policy formulation and implementation.
The crowning achievement was the launch of the ‘5Es Framework to Turnaround Pakistan’, prioritizing Exports, Energy, Environment, E-Pakistan, and Equity & Empowerment. This framework would prove to be the bedrock for transforming Pakistan into a $1 trillion economy by 2035.
“Approved by the National Economic Council in June 2023, the framework offers a tangible pathway for economic revival in five priority areas, including Exports, E-Pakistan, Environment and Climate Change, Energy and Infrastructure, and Equity and Empowerment,” explained the report.
Pakistan Outlook 2035 and the revival of CPEC were another milestone achievements of the ministry during the period, said the report.
The digital censuses were the landmark achievement of the ministry. This was the first time in the country’s history that the Council of Common Interests (CCI) approved the results of the digital census.
Recognizing the significance of Higher Education, the Planning Ministry allocated a historic budget for the Higher Education Commission (HEC), raising it from Rs 45 billion to Rs 70 billion. This step was further augmented by the establishment of three centers of excellence.
In November 2022, the Young Development Fellows (YDF) programme was revived while giving an opportunity to the 40 YDFs to learn policy matters in the ministry.