UAE-sponsored projects in Pakistan get into third phase
abu dhabi — The third phase of the UAE-Pakistan Assistance Programme (UAE-PAP) — which consists of 40 projects at a cost of Dh736 million — was recently launched. The programme’s first and second phases saw a total of 165 projects implemented between 2011 and 2017, at a total cost of Dh1.5 billion.
The programme, funded by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), is being implemented in line with the directives of the President, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, with the support of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. The project is under the supervision of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.
The UAE-PAP announced that the projects will cover five main development areas that include roads, education, healthcare, water
and agriculture, in addition to food assistance and anti-polio vaccination campaigns. The projects to be executed include a 42km Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa highway; a 65km highway in Baluchistan province; the construction of one
college and two schools for 1,500 students in Baluchistan; and the construction and fitting of a heart hospital in Quetta.
Around 29 projects will be dedicated to supplying water to villages and cities with little access to clean drinking water. The projects will also include the construction of the first dates factory in Pakistan to help farmers with developing and marketing their products.
The four infrastructure projects completed at a total cost of Dh447.4 million include the 50km Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Road; the 72km Pak-Emirates Friendship Road; the Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Bridge; and the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Bridge.
In education, the UAE-PAP took the initiative to help Pakistan by funding 60 educational projects, costing Dh152.7 million.
Health projects, especially in distant areas that lacked basic services, were also a top priority in the humanitarian plans and efforts . These include rehabilitating seven hospitals, clinics and medical institutes; providing healthcare in flood-affected areas of Swat, Bajaur and Dir; and building four hospitals in South Waziristan. —