ISLAMABAD: Sindh Secretary for Irrigation Zarif Khero on Wednesday dismissed as baseless the allegations of corruption in the World Bank-funded Sindh Barrages Improvement Project (SBIP), amid reports that the World Bank President Ajay Banga skipped the scheduled project’s inauguration to avoid potential controversy.
He stated this during the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs held under the chairmanship of Senator Saifullah Abro to review matters related to ongoing development projects, financial compliance, and transparency in foreign-funded initiatives. He said that because of negative observations of the committee reported in the media, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) sought details of this project, which left a very bad impression during the visit of World President Ajay Banga.
The Secretary Irrigation along with Project Director of the Sindh Water and Agriculture Transformation (SWAT) briefed the Committee on the improvement and rehabilitation of the Akram Wah Canal (SWAT Project) under the World Bank, including the prequalification process of consultants and contractors, complete tendering process, bidding data sheet, latest progress, and the implementation status of the Committee’s previous recommendations on the said project.
However, when the chairman of the committee tried to raise objections, the Secretary said that so far no work has been initiated on this project. The Committee was informed that the World Bank has its own transparency mechanisms for project implementation, and the project is currently at the prequalification stage. He said appointment of consultants is the World Bank’s prerogative and Sindh Government has nothing to with it. Senator Rubina Khaild also argued that why the committee raising objections on the international donors funded projects on such a frequent basis. She said World Bank or Asian Development Bank has their own procedures and criteria to hire consultants or contractors. She said because of continuous meddling, ADB is nor willing new development projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Committee directed that all relevant documents, along with complete details, be uploaded on the official SWAT website to ensure transparency and facilitate public review. He further observed that the failure of the consultancy firm to review the project design even after 20 months raises serious questions about its performance and eligibility for the project.
In response to a query raised by Senator Syed Waqar Mehdi regarding the project review mechanism of the Economic Affairs Division, the Secretary, EAD, briefed the Committee in detail on the monitoring process for foreign-funded projects. He explained that the Ministry is responsible for overseeing the projects and ensuring that funds are utilized transparently and strictly for their intended purposes. The member observed that disbursement of loans should also be carefully overseen by the EAD, particularly in light of the country’s significant fiscal constraints. He expressed concern that loans are not always utilized properly or transparently by the concerned departments.
The Committee also discussed on all ongoing and incoming projects undertaken by the Provincial Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in collaboration with multilateral, bilateral partners and UN agencies, including their proposals, tendering process, and up-to-date progress. The Secretary, Planning and Development Department, Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, briefed the Committee that there are a total of 52 schemes with an estimated cost of Rs. 1,072.3 billion. Out of these, 23 projects are funded by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, mainly focusing on education, MSD, agriculture, roads, tourism, health, finance and energy sectors.
The Committee also inquired about the ongoing and upcoming road sector projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He stressed that prequalification and tendering processes must be conducted in a fully transparent manner, especially as his office has received complaints regarding alleged irregularities in the tendering process. He called for strict action against those found responsible and directed that the Committee’s earlier recommendations on the matter be implemented without delay. He further directed the department to submit a one-page brief on all on-going projects to the Committee.
The Committee expressed serious concern over the delay in the recovery of the embezzled amount of Rs5 billion in the Sindh Solar Energy Project. The Committee recalled that the Secretary, Government of Sindh, had previously acknowledged during a meeting that significant misappropriations and irregularities had been identified in the project. The Committee directed the EAD to take up the matter on an urgent basis and make every possible effort to recover the amount and ensure its deposit into the national exchequer. The EAD assured the committee that the matter would be taken up with the Government of Sindh and that appropriate action will be initiated against the officials found involved.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026