ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has recommended two projects at the cost of Rs345.63 billion to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) for further consideration and final approval. The CDWP met with Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan in the chair at P-Block Secretariat on Monday.
Secretary Planning Hamid Yaqoob Sheikh, senior officials from the Planning Commission and federal ministries/divisions also participated in the meeting, while representatives from the provincial governments participated through video conferences.
A project related to health was presented in the meeting namely, "Implementation of universal health coverage under health insurance program in Punjab" at the cost of Rs332.845 billion recommended to the ECNEC for further consideration.
The main objective of the programme includes insurance scheme coverage for 100 percent population of Punjab for its permanent residents as per CNIC issued by the Nadra. The scheme will provide cashless in-patient healthcare secondary and priority care services through an open enrolment policy.
There is no limit to family size. The health insurance programme is a hospitalization scheme mainly; daycare admission will also be covered in the programme. Household members of the family will be able to avail following health cover, (i) To access the secondary care hospitalization component including maternity benefits;(ii) A priority care component is limited and the excess of loss coverage is on top of secondary healthcare coverage.
A project related to the Higher Education Commission (HEC) was presented in the meeting namely, "Higher Education Development in Pakistan (HEDP)- Revised" valued at Rs12.782 billion recommenced to the ECNEC for further approval. The period of completion and expected date of completion is 60 months.
The main objective of the projects is to focus on is low and equitable participation for students from disadvantaged backgrounds; Poor quality of teaching and research conditions (including inadequate and irrelevant research, and limited links between HEIs and the industrial and services sectors of the economy); Below-par institutional governance and management, especially lack the Higher Education Management Information System (HEMIS), which severely complicates long-term sectoral and institutional planning, monitoring, and accountability.
These challenges are particularly exacerbated for affiliated colleges; technical assistance higher education policy development and capacity building through partnerships, regulation and funding of higher education sector and project management monitoring and evaluation, and Higher Education Data Repository and Data-Driven Services.
The deputy chairman Planning Commission directed all the concerned officials to ensure the completion of the projects within the timelines, as the project is crucial for the socio-economic wellbeing of the people of Pakistan.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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