News
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Ministries barred from approaching US directly* Finance Ministry devises plan for early release of US aid
* Planning Commission to be sole govt body to recommend projectsBy Sajid Chaudhry
ISLAMABAD: The Finance Ministry has taken a serious notice of some ministries and divisions directly approaching US authorities for the release of funds under the Kerry-Lugar Act, and barred them from independently contacting the US for funding. Similarly, the US authorities have been restrained from directly contacting the ministries and seeking their plans to utilise the aid, official sources at the ministry informed Daily Times on Wednesday.
The Finance Ministry has also put in place a “realistic plan” to ensure that aid under the Kerry-Lugar Act by the US authorities is released as soon as possible during the ongoing fiscal year.
Under a new arrangement, only the Finance Ministry and the Economic Affairs Division will contact US authorities for the release of funds, while the Planning Commission would be the sole government institution to recommend projects for the utilisation of the aid.
Submission: The arrangement, approved and to be monitored by Finance Minister Dr Hafeez Shaikh, seeks submission of only those projects where funding is required immediately, to ensure an early release of funds from the US government and to provide relief to the masses as soon as possible.
Earlier, the ambitious plans and projects submitted by various ministries and divisions, worth trillions, not only resulted in delaying the release of funds, but also wasted a lot of time that was spent deliberating on such unrealistic plans, Finance Minister Dr Hafeez Shaikh said.
It is not only the US government or its parliamentary institutions, but various federal ministries of Pakistan have also been found delaying the release of aid under the Kerry-Lugar Act. The sources said ministries had submitted over-ambitious and long-term plans and projects, where funding was not immediately required, the officials explained.
Long-term projects: The ministries have sought funding for long-term projects, ignoring the US administration’s request to submit short and medium-term programmes for not only release of funds at the earliest, and to provide quick relief to the masses and develop goodwill, sources added.
The ministries have also proposed “mega” projects where preparation can even take years and funds for which will be needed only after the documentation is completed, making US authorities wait for the completion of initial work for funding.
A few ministries have even asked the US authorities to provide around 25 luxury vehicles as well as 200 DVD’s, without considering the needs of the massive poor population of the country, who should be the real beneficiaries of the Kerry-Lugar aid, the sources added.
Authorities at the Finance Ministry feel that the ministry’s new arrangement would help materialise the pledges made by the US authorities for the ongoing fiscal year and benefits of the aid would be available to the poor at the earliest.
The Pakistan government, in its 2010-11 budget, has projected $500 million to be available to Pakistan in aid during the ongoing financial year.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk