QUETTA: Balochistan has allocated Rs50.7 billion for next fiscal year’s Annual Development Programme (ADP), an increase of 13 per cent from the last year’s Rs43.91bn.
The development budget includes foreign project assistance and identifies “core priority areas” of education, health, power generation, women development, road transport and water supply.
Presenting the budget 2014-15 in the provincial assembly on Thursday, Mir Khalid Langove, finance adviser to the Balochistan chief minister, said the political leadership has brought all stakeholders on the same page to bring about directional changes in the development budget by focusing on social sector and improving productivity instead of investing in bricks and mortar.
This would help bridge gaps in current health and education indicators and their targets in the millennium development goals (MDGs), he said.
The government has decided to increase spending on education by 23.09pc, health by 8.63pc, agriculture and power generation by 7pc each, and road transport by 20pc. Mr Langove said the provincial government has “firm commitment to deliver on its promises and would improve the Human Development index (HDI)”.
The total number of schemes to be executed in the financial year 2014-15 will be 1,693, of which 616 are ongoing and 1,077 new.
According to budget documents, “The prime objective of the state is to provide basic amenities to citizen. Keeping in view this objective, the Balochistan government through its development budget has tried its level best to contribute in the socio-economic uplift of the common man.”
During the outgoing fiscal year, Balochistan set aside Rs43.91bn for the ADP, of which 23.07pc was for education, 9.07pc for health and 18pc for communication.
In Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) 2013-14, the total number of schemes was 739, of which 638 schemes were old and 101 new.
In education sector, major development initiatives include scholarships for higher education, in and outside the country, provision of facilities in schools and colleges, repair and reconstruction of schools affected by earthquake and establishment of colleges.
As for health sector, the government would focus on improving Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) coverage, purchasing ambulances, training community midwives, preventing hepatitis and providing medical equipment to public sector hospitals.
In agriculture sector, the province would launch the second phase of green-Balochistan programme, construct an agriculture university, introduce tissue culture and reduce waste of irrigation water.
It also plans to construct 6,500km roads, set up coal power projects, convert tube-wells on solar power, and develop fisheries sectors.
Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2014