ISLAMABAD
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday said that development of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and other backward areas was the government’s priority.
“All steps will be taken to ensure smooth release of fund for projects in these areas,” Dar assured the senators and MNAs from FATA who called on him.
The minister shared with them the details of his recent visit to Afghanistan for attending the 9th session of Pak-Afghan Joint Economic Commission.
He informed them that he had a very useful visit to Afghanistan where he met the political leadership and shared Pakistan’s vision for a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
Dar also briefed the lawmakers on his visits to the major under-construction developmental projects undertaken by Pakistan in Afghanistan under its bilateral assistance programme.
These projects include recommencement of works on Torkham-Jalalabad additional carriageway, Nishtar Kidney Centre in Jalalabad and the Liaqat Ali Khan Engineering Faculty of Balkh University in Mazar-e-Sharif.
The minister informed the Parliamentarians that Nishtar Kidney Centre will soon be equipped with the relevant apparatus on priority basis.
On the occasion, the senators and MNAs from FATA expressed the hope that the finance minister’s visit to Afghanistan will generate a lot of good will for Pakistan and will help improve relations between the two countries.
The parliamentarians requested the minister for the early release of the third quarter of the developmental fund for FATA.
