Govt wants more investment in FATA

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Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Planning and Development Secretary Shahzad Khan Bangash said the government wanted to focus on health, education and economic development in FATA, urging development partners to step forward and invest in these sectors.

Addressing the third Donors Coordination Steering Committee (DCSC) meeting, held in Islamabad on Friday, Bangash lauded the role of international development partners, saying they had been supporting FATA in particular, very actively.

“Mapping of the investment made in FATA during 2010-13, explicitly shows the gap between what Post Crisis Needs Assessment (PCNA) recommends for FATA and the actual investment made during the last three years,” he said, adding that donors should come forward and invest in sectors where there was need.

He went on to say that investment mapping had given a clear picture of gaps and priorities and donors should look into this analysis and invest in the priority sectors.

Partners of the Multi Donor Trust Fund, on the occasion, appreciated the mapping exercise carried out by PCNA-Implementation Support Unit and agreed that impact assessment of investments made since 2009 in FATA should be prepared.

The meeting also agreed that sub working groups would be formed for the purpose and the steering committee will be informed of the discussions held accordingly.

“We have put the real picture before donors and now they should come up with their own recommendations,” said Bangash.

Earlier, FATA PCNA- Implementation Support Unit Coordinator Muhammad Zahoor while making a meticulous presentation on the mapping of investments made in FATA during the last three years, informed the implementing partners of the investment made in various sectors including governance, health, education, infrastructure, agriculture and natural resource, off farm economic development and strategic communication.

Zahoor said FATA’s share in the Multi Donor Trust Fund was $ 1.5 billion whereas investment made by both donors and government was $ 761.766 million, depicting a shortfall of $ 786.853 million.

FATA Projects Director General Yusuf Rahim on the occasion also made a presentation on issuance of no-objection certificates (NOCs) to development partners intending to work in FATA and elaborated the process and mechanism in detail.
All officials on the occasion also answered various questions raised by development partners.