Pakistan allocates 255 billion rupees for co-financing foreign projects — Dawn

Pakistan has earmarked 255 billion rupees in local co-financing for externally funded projects in the current fiscal year, instead of the requested 537 billion rupees. The reduction was attributed to budget constraints and a shortage of funds in the national currency.

A group led by Planning Secretary Tahir Noor informed the Senate Committee on Planning, Development and Special Initiatives of this, Dawn reports. The meeting in Islamabad was chaired by Senator Quratulain Marri.

98 projects in the development programme

Pakistan’s Public Sector Development Programme for the 2026–2027 fiscal year includes 98 externally funded projects. Their total estimated cost amounts to 8.1 trillion rupees, while external assistance totals 4.65 trillion rupees.

Following consultations with ministries, government agencies and donors, the Economic Affairs Division had proposed allocating 425 billion rupees for local co-financing. However, on June 10, the National Economic Council approved a development programme worth 1 trillion rupees, against a total requirement of 2.9 trillion rupees, and allocated 255 billion rupees for these projects.

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The planning team said that most projects are expected to be completed during the current fiscal year. The Senate committee stressed the need for effective monitoring and timely implementation of work, and also called for projects to be provided with sufficient funding in rupees to avoid delays.

Sukkur–Hyderabad motorway

Tahir Noor also told the committee that work on the Sukkur–Hyderabad M6 motorway is expected to begin within a few months, as $705 million in external financing is already available for the project.

The committee expressed concern over prolonged construction delays. The first and second sections are being developed under a public-private partnership model, while the signing of the concession agreement is planned for February next year. The Asian Development Bank has agreed to provide transaction preparation advisory services for these sections. For the remaining parts of the road, the Planning Ministry reported that financing arrangements with international partners had been secured.

The committee also called for priority to be given to domestic resources and expenditure in rupees, given interest payments and obligations to repay foreign-currency loans.