PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Finance Minister Aftab Alam Afridi on Friday unveiled the Rs416.3 billion Annual Development Plan (ADP) for 2024-25, an increase of 38 per cent over the caretakers’ Rs301bn.

While the Pakistan Tehreek-I-Insaf provincial government increased the ADP size by Rs115.3bn for FY25, it is lower than the Rs418bn development outlay it unveiled in 2022-23.

The ADP 2024-25 comprises development funds for the settled and merged areas, a share of the two-tiered local government system, an accelerated implementation programme for the merged areas, donor-funded projects, and the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP).

According to the budget documents, Rs120bn has been allocated for the settled districts and Rs36bn for developing the province’s merged districts.

Similarly, Rs24bn has been earmarked for the district annual development plan, which would be devolved to the two-tier local government system, including tehsil, village, and neighbourhood.

Another Rs79bn would be utilised in the merged areas under the Accelerated Implementation Programme (AIP).

The development budget would include a hefty Rs130.59bn through foreign project assistance. The documents reveal that Rs24.4bn is also part of the development outlay to be provided by the federal government under the PSDP.

According to the budget documents, Rs65.9bn has been earmarked under the head of multi-sectoral development, Rs46.6bn for road construction, Rs30.2bn for the energy and power department, Rs32.4bn for the health department, Rs23.2bn for elementary and secondary education, Rs23.1bn for urban development, and Rs21.7bn for water.

The departments for which less development funds are allocated include Rs67 million for the environment, Rs177m for the Excise Taxation and Narcotics Department, Rs302m for the Housing Department, Rs71m for information, Rs152m for the Labour Department, Rs224m for public-private partnership and Rs 308m for the Food Department.

Sharing the salient features of the development sector on the floor of the provincial assembly, the finance minister said that Rs4.4bn has been allocated for the development of the Higher Education Department.

Besides other development activities planned for the next fiscal year, the minister said prominent among them are the establishment of 30 new colleges in the rented buildings and the Centre of Excellence for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM).

He said that Rs10bn would be used on the Chashma Right Bank Canal (Left-Cum-Gravity) project, which will irrigate 300,000 acres and make the province self-sufficient in the food sector.

The finance minister further said that Rs12bn has been allocated for different employment schemes under which 100,000 youths of the province will get jobs. These employment schemes include the Ehsaas Rozgar Programme, Ehsaas Nojawan Programme, and Ehsaas Hunar Programme.

In the road sector, the finance minister said the government was set to launch big projects in public-private partnerships, including Dir Motorway and Dera Ismail Khan Motorway.

The minister said that Rs37bn would be used for the health insurance program (Sehat Card Plus) and Rs10bn for the purchase of medicines in public-sector hospitals.

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2024