UAE gives Dh367.3m grant to Pakistan

The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the ‘UAE Project to Assist Pakistan’, whereby it gives a grant worth Dh367.3 million ($100 million) to fund development projects in Pakistan.

The MoU was signed by the Acting Director General of ADFD, Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, and the Director General of the UAE Project to Assist Pakistan, Abdullah Al Ghafli, in presence of a number of officials, at ADFD head office in Abu Dhabi.

The grant will fund three vital development projects to bolster transport, education and health sectors.

Al Suwaidi said: "The grant, which is under the directives and the direct follow-up by the UAE’s prudent leadership, reflects the UAE government's interest in extending a helping hand to developing countries across the world in order to contribute to efforts to alleviate their suffering. The UAE is interested in being an effective partner in effective development projects, in particular in infrastructure sector which is a pillar of economic and social development and the solid foundation of growth and prosperity of societies."

The grant includes Dh223 million to fund the construction of Makeen-Miranshah Road, which will link South Waziristan with North Waziristan running through three cities and twenty villages. The said project will also include the construction of ten bridges spanning between 50 to 19- metres.

Dh92 million will be used to fund the second phase of the 1000-bed UAE Specialist Hospital in Islamabad, one of the biggest healthcare projects under construction in Pakistan. When completed, the said hospital will be able to serve 6,000 outpatients a day.

Dh46 million of the grant will be used to build three vocational colleges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

For his part, Al Ghafli said the agreement with ADFD will add boost to the UAE's humanitarian efforts in Pakistan under the directives of the wise leadership of the President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, General Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. The efforts are followed up by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, he noted.

He affirmed that the grant will boost sustainable development and economic growth in Pakistan.

ADFD started its activitiesin Pakistan in 1981 when it provided a loan worth more than Dh66 million to Pakistan to fund the building of Tarbela Dam on River Indus to boost Pakistan's electricity sector.
 






 

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.