Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Monday chaired a meeting to review the proposals for the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) for the fiscal year 2025-26.
The meeting, attended among others by Secretary Planning Awais Manzur Sumra and senior ministry officials, approved guiding principles for incorporating new projects and carrying forward ongoing ones in the annual development plan, according to a news release.
The minister issued clear instructions to reduce the throw-forward of the PSDP, stressing the need to prioritize completing projects where 80 per cent of the cost has already been incurred. “Timely provision of funds for high-priority projects must be ensured, while low-value projects should be frozen,” he added.
The meeting also decided that new projects aligned with the objectives of “URAAN PAKISTAN,” the National Transformation Plan 2024-29, would be incorporated into the upcoming PSDP.
Ahsan Iqbal stressed that the development budget would be linked to achieving the desired outcomes, making the allocation of public resources accountable.
The meeting directed all ministries to present implementation plans that would improve the quality and performance indicators of their projects when submitting new schemes. The minister highlighted that URAAN PAKISTAN was a comprehensive plan for the country’s development and that all national development goals must be linked to this program to achieve the required economic growth pace.