CM revealed establishment of economic zones in new districts of erstwhile FATA, PATA

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan has revealed establishment of economic zones in the new districts of the erstwhile FATA and PATA.

He was working on the opening of road communication linking Afghanistan towards central Asia to make this region the economic hub in the wake of CPEC.

He was presiding over a high level meeting at Chief Minister House Peshawar. Advisor to CM Abdul Karim, Head of SSU, Sahibzada Saeed, Secretary Industries, Commissioner Peshawar Shahab Ali Shah Attended said a hand out issued here on Saturday.

The meeting focused on the mega projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that included the finalization of concessional agreement, financial model and the infrastructure development for the Rashakai industrial Zone, the energization of CRBC for electricity production and agriculture productivity.

Furthermore, Hydel project generation in Malakand and Hazara Division and the provision of cheap electricity to boost industrialization in Malakand and Hazara Divisions, conversion of gas for electricity in Rashakai, Khitar and DIKhan Economic Zones, boosting the traut fish production, establishment of a model village of FATA, Torkham and Ghulam Khan custom supported terminal and other allied issues were also discussed.

The meeting made a number of decisions and decided the way forward for putting these projects into the implementation phase.

Addressing the participants the Chief Minister directed to immediately give final touches to the concessional agreement leading to the finalization of financial model for the Rashakai economic Zone.

The prerequisites, required for the Rashakai Economic Zone should be taken care of in order to get the approval of the Federal Government by January 15, 2019.

The energization of CRBC and the projects converting the dedicated gas of 225 mmcf for electricity conversion in the locative economic zones of Rashakai, Khatar and DI Khan should be taken care of he added.

Mahmood Khan ordered to sketch out a plan for the provision of electricity produced locally in Malakand Division for food processing and agro-based industrialization and tourism related activities in Malakand Division.

"CPEC has brought along multifaceted challenges and we have the requisite level of commitment to fulfill these challenges. We would train our youth to coup with the growing challenges of producing skilled man power", he added.

Chief Minister said that the new merged districts of the erstwhile FATA would get one of the economic zone under the CPEC formula and therefore the public institutions should take all necessary measures to mature it.

The hydro project station of Mataltan and others producing electricity cheaply would be provided to the food processing, agro-based, livestock and tourism related industries on cheaper rate that would be the overall socio-economic development plan for the northern districts of the province. He also directed to identify a village to be developed as a model village of the merged districts.

Mahmood Khan said that peace is the basic prerequisite for the economic growth. Once peace is returned to the region, the region would have the bright prospects of growth.

He called upon the participants to prepare themselves for the growing opportunities in the wake of CPEC. This region including the merged districts would be the end beneficiaries of the boom in trade.

The government would provide one window operation and asked the IT and ST Department to prepare an integrated dash board for the one window operation to facilitate investment, trade and industrialization in the province.