Germany to grant $22mln in aid for socioeconomic projects

ISLAMABAD: Germany on Friday pledged $22 million worth of grants to complement Pakistan’s spending in the fields of energy, climate change and health.

German Development Bank – KfW Development Bank (Pakistan) – Country Director Sebastian Jacobi and Economic Affairs Division Secretary Noor Ahmed signed the three grant-in-aid agreements with a cumulative value of Euro 18.5 million.

Under these agreements, the government of Germany will provide support to the government of Pakistan for health facilities and combating polio in the country, along with services towards mitigating energy issues.

Under the ‘women employment in private health sector’, KfW will provide a grant of Euro 12 million for the establishment of women’s health clinics in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab to promote self-employment of women in the health sector, and training of qualified women to run clinics.

For ‘polio eradication’, KfW will provide an additional grant of Euro 5 million to augment the existing support for polio eradication. This will help Pakistan finance polio vaccines and meet the costs for vaccination campaigns for implementation of polio emergency action plan.

Under the climate change/energy component, a grant of Euro 1.5 million is provided to implement accompanying services for the Harpo hydropower project in the Gilgit-Baltistan region.

These accompanying measures will be carried out at the project site in support of the main Harpo hydropower project to ensure its sustainability.

The accompanying services will comprise assistances to strengthen the power utility – Gilgit-Baltistan Power Department – and accompanying investments in the social infrastructure including relevant consulting measures.

Earlier this year, Germany, through KfW signed agreements with Pakistan to provide Euro 27 million for Gharo substation in Sindh and Euro 6 million for regional infrastructure project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

In September, the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) supported social development of Harpo valley under 34.5 megawatts hydro power project worth Rs255 million.

The focus of the project would be the procurement of machinery and tools for the hydroelectric workshop in Skardu, community development work in the Harpo valley, upgrade of dispensary and establishment of girls’ middle school.

The CDWP allowed for extension in re-tendering of the Rs12.11 billion 20MW hydropower project in Hanzel Gilgit. The project was aimed at constructing Hanzel hydropower project (10MW) along Gilgit River, a right bank tributary of Indus River to provide electricity to Gilgit town and surrounding areas through a 132-kilovolt transmission line.