Promoting quality education in merged districts top priority: CM

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur on Saturday said that promoting quality education and employment opportunities in merged districts was the priority of his government.

He was talking to a representative delegation of the World Food Programme (WFP) headed by Coco Ushiyama called on him at the Chief Minister’s House.

Both the dignitaries discussed the prospects for expanding the working scope between the provincial government and WFP and agreed to enhance mutual cooperation in the various sectors. The chief minister lauded the cooperation of WFP in the various sectors of the province and said that his government needed more support from WFP and other donor agencies for the development of merged areas. He lauded the WFP’s initiative for providing educational stipends to the girls in merged districts and said that despite the financial constraints, the government was committed to bringing about positive change in the life of people.

“We need to make concerted efforts to bring the tribal districts into the mainstream because the war against terrorism badly affected the infrastructure there,” he remarked.

He said that there was a dire need to construct farm-to-market roads to accelerate economic activities in the merged districts. The chief minister said the government was planning to build small dams to ensure food security in the province, whereas introducing other modern technologies including tunnel farming was under consideration to develop the agriculture sector on modern lines in addition to establishing food testing laboratories in the province. “We need to utilize available natural water resources for producing hydropower and ensuring self-sufficiency in agricultural products. We also need to have foreign investment to materialize all these plans,” he said.

World Food Programme representative Coco Ushiyama said that World Food Programme was currently working with the provincial government on various public welfare projects, including provision of educational stipends to 30,000 girls in the merged districts. “The WFP is willing to expand its collaboration with the provincial government in the various public welfare interventions,” she remarked.