Pakistan and European Union Sign €65 Million Agreements to Launch Three Major Development Programmes
ISLAMABAD: To launch three big structural development programmes, financing agreements worth of EUR 65 million (Rs20.64 billion) have been finalised between Pakistan and the European Union (EU).
Economic Affairs Secretary Muhammad Humair Karim and EU Ambassador Raimundas Karoblis signed the important agreements formally in Islamabad. The new initiatives will help to improve the investment climate in the country, strengthen the rule of law and foster a more conducive investment climate for commercial businesses, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said.
The package’s financial support will directly support key actions related to energy and environmental sustainability. Interestingly, one of the key programmes is to be put in place under the EU’s Global Gateway initiative to ensure more foreign investment.
This feature aims to increase the interest of European and international companies and improve the national tax system and fiscal planning.
The second major initiative is about improving renewable energy use in off-grid rural areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). This scheme will be a catalyst for investment in the private sector and public-private partnerships in the province’s energy industry to ensure sustainable energy access.
Moreover, the third programme will enhance citizens’ access to justice in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan and will help to build alternative and commercial dispute resolution mechanism in Punjab and Sindh.
Economic Affairs Secretary Muhammad Humair Karim pointed out that the programmes are responding closely to Pakistan’s national goals of foreign investment and improving rural electrification. EU Ambassador Raimundas Karoblis restated that the agreements are a testament to the EU’s steadfast commitment to the long term economic development of Pakistan.