The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) cleared four projects worth Rs. 136.74 billion during its meeting held on Wednesday.
The forum considered six projects under the chairmanship of Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Dr. Mohammad Jahanzeb Khan.
The forum took up the Emergency Plan for Polio Eradication project worth Rs. 131.99 billion, Replacement of Obsolete Equipment & Procurement of new Electro-Medical Equipment for National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, Islamabad worth Rs. 524.69 million, Expansion and Up-gradation of Pakistan Petroleum Corehouse for its sustainable operations to facilitate Oil & Gas exploration research worth Rs. 819.102 million, Establishment of Mohtrama Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Medical College Mirpur worth Rs. 3.4 billion.
The forum cleared the Emergency Plan for Polio Eradication project for 5-year in line with the current National Emergency Action Plan for Polio Eradication 2021-23 and GPEI strategy 2022-2026 with a focus on eliminating the Wild Poliovirus and CVDPV2 across the country and achieving post-polio certification. The primary goal of the project is to interrupt Wild Poliovirus type 1 and circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 transmission as a path to global polio eradication.
The program plans to limit circulation to core reservoirs and shared transmission corridors and then interrupt all poliovirus within the reservoirs by 2024. Secretary Health informed the forum that the project will continue for five years to eradicate polio from the country. However, he added that recently two cases of polio were reported in North Waziristan which emerged from neighboring country Afghanistan. He said that due to the porous border polio cases emerged from Afghanistan and that matter was discussed with the Afghan government. Pakistan asked the Afghan government to conduct a door-to-door polio campaign and secure the border in order to avoid further polio cases.
Similarly, the forum also approved the Expansion and Up-gradation of Pakistan Petroleum Corehouse for its sustainable operations to facilitate Oil & Gas exploration research at the cost of Rs. 819.1 million. The Ministry of Petroleum is the executing agency and the project envisages the expansion of Pakistan Petroleum Corehouse to increase its storage capacity, upgrade its laboratory facilities for analytical services and value addition of well samples archived in it to facilitate oil & gas exploration.
The Expansion of PETCORE building with additional racking system with storage material (standard wood pulp cardboard boxes and vial trays) for well samples and up-gradation of existing lab facilities through procurement of state-of-the-art equipment will provide necessary services to the E&P sector. The scope of work includes expansion of Pakistan Petroleum Corehouse through the construction of new storage capacity (29,064 Sq Ft), up-gradation of laboratory facilities for analytical services, and value addition of well samples.
The forum also cleared the Replacement of Obsolete Equipment & Procurement of new Electro-Medical Equipment for National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, Islamabad worth Rs. 524.69 million. The Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination is the executing agency.
The meeting was attended by Additional Secretary Ministry of Planning and Development (PD&SI), Secretary Ministry of Water Resources, Secretary Ministry of Health, Secretary Ministry of Petroleum, Chairman National Highway Authority, NHA, Members Planning Commission and other key stakeholders.