The Punjab government and its development partner National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday for joint efforts for development of neglected districts of South Punjab. Planning & Development (P&D) Board Chairman Habibur Rehman Gillani and Southern Punjab Poverty Alleviation Programme (SPPAP) Director Muhammad Saghir and NRSP Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rashid Bajwa signed the MoU during a ceremony held at P&D Complex. P&D Secretary Iftikhar Ali Sahu, NRSP CEO Rashid Bajwa, P&D Member Education Khalid Sultan, SPPAP Project Director Saghir, Education Institute of Rural Management Director Iram Anis and other relevant officers also attended the ceremony. Chairing the ceremony, P&D Chairman Gillani stated that Southern Punjab and less developed areas of the province have been given top priority by the present government. The government has focused on the development of the backward areas while practical steps have also been taken for the development of the Southern Punjab. He also said Southern Punjab Secretariat will start working from the next fiscal year. People living in South Punjab will have not to go to Lahore for redressal of their grievances. Focusing on (SPPAP), he reiterated that government had launched the SPPAP at the total cost of Rs 4,657.957 million with the financial assistance of International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) during 2011-2012 in four districts of South Punjab Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar, Muzaffargarh and Rajanpur. The project objective was to increase incomes of 80,000 poor households by enhancing the employment potential of the people and increasing agriculture productivity and production. Project also achieved all the targets effectively till the completion of time frame March 2018. Based on its performance, the project was declared the best project in Pakistan by IFAD in 2015-16, he disclosed. Addressing the participants, Gillani informed that IFAD has provided additional financing of $25 million for extension in gestation period of the said project for another three years up to March 31, 2021 and two new districts Rahim Yar Khan and Dera Ghazi Khan were included to the original project districts while four districts named as Layyah, Bhakkar, Mianwali and Khushab have now been selected for soft interventions. To include the additional financing, revised PC-I at the total cost of Rs 7,565.780 million was approved from the Executive Committee of National Economic Council to actual implement the interventions in the respective districts. Published in Daily Times, January 1st 2019.