PPP policy board approves Malir Expressway project

The Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Unit of Sindh on Thursday presented the Malir Expressway project, a 50-kilometre expressway from the Super Highway to Korangi 8000 Road, which will be constructed on the left bank of the Malir River.

At the 28th PPP Policy Board meeting chaired by Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah at the CM House, there was a proposal to construct an interchange on Link Road to give passage to Education City.

The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, Minister Local Government Saeed Ghani, Adviser to CM Murtaza Wahab, MPA Ghulam Qadir Chandio, Chairman P&D Mohammad Waseem, Principal Secretary to CM Sajid Jamal Abro, Secretary Finance Najam Shah, MD PPP Unit Khaldi Shaikh and other members and officers concerned.

Participants told the chief minister that seven leading firms had participated in the bid for construction of the project. The chief minister directed the PPP unit to evaluate the bid and award the contract purely on merit. “I am keen to see start of the work,” he said.

The PPP unit endorsed the chief minister’s decision to award work and start construction of the project.

Green Line: Earlier, the Sindh government had started the process of procuring buses for the Green Line project being constructed by the federal government. Now, the federal government has decided to procure buses on its own; therefore, the PPP unit approved the cancellation of the Green Line buses’ procurement process.

The PPP board also approved start of the Orange Line buses’ procurement process afresh.

Speaking at the meeting, Chief Minister Shah said the Public-Private Partnership Unit of the province had been recognised by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and ranked at 6th in Asia in its report of 2018.

“This is the manifestation of our hard work, sincerity and commitment with the people of Sindh,” he said while presiding over the 28th PPP Policy Board meeting at the CM House on Thursday.

At the start the meeting, the chief secretary presented a report of the FIU in which the Sindh PPP Unit has been ranked 6th in Asia.

The Economist Intelligence Unit report titled ‘Evaluating the environment for public-private partnerships in Aisa - The 2018 Infrascope’ says that “with exception, Gujarat state (India) and Sindh province (Pakistan), which are subnational governmental entities and which show the importance of subnational government PPP programme as potential models of best practice”.

Both were also included in the previous Asia Infrascope in 2014, although the use of a different methodology in that year makes score comparison problematic.