Daily Times

KARACHI: Sindh government has proposed to spend around eight percent on health sector out of the total outlay of Rs 869 billion budget during fiscal year 2016-17, said Sindh Finance Minister Murad Ali Shah in his budget speech. In the annual budget 2016-17, health sector would be witnessing around 13.8 percent rise in revenue expenditures from Rs 58 billion in current financial year to Rs 66 billion in next fiscal year. The provincial government announced to provide 3,500 jobs in health sector out of total proposed 50,000 jobs to people in various sectors. Shah said, “Health has remained a priority sector for our government as we will continue to expand our resource allocation for this sector.”

He said the establishment of children hospital at Sukkur under ‘Korean Soft Loan’ besides construction of Talib-ul-Moula Medical College and Teaching Hospital Hala and construction of emergency centre at Pacca Chang, district Khairpur is also put in the budget 2016-17.

The minister announced construction of Paramedical Institute at Mithi in district Tharparkar. The annual development programme of health is Rs 14 billion against Rs 13 billion of current financial year in the new proposals.

He said, “Besides provincial ADP and Federal Public Sector Development Programme, Rs 1.8 billion have been allocated for foreign funded projects of health department, which include Sindh Nutrition Support Programme worth Rs 1.4 billion and establishment of Child Health Care Institute at Sukkur worth Rs 400 million with Korean assistance.”

The minister said health would be getting third largest share in Sindh budget. He said the importance to tertiary health care is vital and in this regard regular and annual recurring grant-in-aid for Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) has been increased from Rs 3 billion to Rs 4 billion.

He asserted that the National Institute Of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) Karachi would receive Rs 1.8 billion, which is Rs 700 million more in the next year. Besides that setting up a Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Unit at NICVD, Karachi will also begin soon whereas a grant for Indus Hospital has been enhanced to Rs 500 million from Rs 300 million, he added.

The upgradation of Neuro surgery at Liaquat University Hospital Hyderabad, renovation and up-gradation of main gynae operation theatre and other operation theatres at Liaquat University Hospital Hyderabad and Jamshoro are in pipeline. Shah announced that the basic health units (BHUs), rural health centres (RHCs), tehsil headquarter THQs and district health quarters DHQs would be upgraded. He said strengthening of Malaria Control Programme, Sindh Immunisation Support programme (SISP), Sindh Malaria Eradication Strategy 2015-20 and prevention and control of hepatitis in Sindh would be done in order to eradicate the diseases.

He said Benazir Bhutto Accident Emergency and Ancillary Services Complex at Civil Hospital Karachi built at a cost of Rs 6.2 billion has been made operational. Rs 1.67 billion have been kept in the budget for its operational expenses.

He said with the support of United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in district Jacobabad, a 200-bed hospital at Jacobabad Institute of Medical Sciences (JIMS) would be made operational adding that year 2017 has been fixed as target date for provision of 200 dialysis facilities and on site oxygen generation and medical gases plants in Sindh.

Shah stated that polio cases were reduced during the year 2015 in Sindh province adding that coverage under polio campaign was improved to 97 percent and reported polio cases were reduced from 30 in 2014 to 12 during the year 2015.