ADB, Britain’s DFID support Pakistan’s national transport policy

ISLAMABAD: The government, in collaboration with the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and Asian Development Bank (ADB), on Tuesday kicked-off a two-year project to formulate the National Transport Policy, a statement said.

The comprehensive national transport policy and master plan will help cut travel time and boost the country’s economic outlook, while positioning it as a regional trade and business hub. It also seeks a safe, efficient, and sustainable transport system to realise Pakistan’s Vision 2025.

The Britain’s Department for International Development is funding a $15.4 million project under its Pakistan Economic Corridors Programme (PECP) to be administered by the Asian Development Bank.

“This is one of the largest technical assistance projects on transport policy supported by Department for International Development and Asian Development Bank in Asia,” the statement said.  

At the project inception workshop held in Islamabad, Joanna Reid, head of Department for International Development Pakistan, Werner E Liepach, Asian Development Bank’s country director for Pakistan, and Ahsan Iqbal, minister of planning, development, and reform, underscored the importance of an effective transport policy that not only creates more jobs but also spurs economic growth.

“Inefficiencies in the performance of the transport sector costs Pakistan’s economy four-six percent of gross domestic product every year,” Liepach said.

“The Asian Development Bank and other partners have been assisting Pakistan address the transport infrastructure deficit, but such infrastructure investment needs to be backed with institutional improvement and policy intervention,” he added.

Pakistan’s transport sector suffers from inadequate and poor infrastructure. A lack of coherent approach to transport network development, fragmented policy planning, and poor condition of road safety for users — with more than 30,000 killed in road accidents annually — are some of the major challenges facing the sector.

This policy will formulate a holistic vision and prioritised action plan to upgrade the country’s transport sector, offering long-term opportunities for all transport modes in Pakistan, including railways, roads, ports and shipping, aviation, and logistics services.

Improvement of road safety programmes, road asset management systems, scaling up resources for better road design and maintenance, and supporting multimodal transport to facilitate trade within Pakistan and with its neighbouring countries, are other key targets of the initiative.