Peshawar:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur has said that instability in Afghanistan affects peace and order in the province. He emphasized that sustainable peace requires dialogue with Kabul.
“Our armed forces, police and people have sacrificed enormous victims of eradicating terrorism. We greet the martyrs who put their lives for peace,” he said, adding, “for a long -term solution, negotiations with Afghanistan are necessary, and it encourages the federal government to have agreed with my proposal in this regard.”
He expressed these views while approaching the participants of the 26th National Security and War Course under the National Defense University, which visited Chief Minister’s House, Peshawar, Friday.
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Acting Inspector General of Police, together with senior officials in planning and development and finance departments, also attended the meeting. During the interaction, the delegation was informed of provincial administration, financial management, development programs and security measures.
In a highlight of the province’s challenges and opportunities, Gandapur said, “KP is rich in natural resources, but previous governments failed to exploit them effectively. When we assumed the office, the province was in the grip of serious economic and security challenges. From day one, we adopted a model for financial confidence and invested strongly in sectors with strong growth potential.”
The minister said that the provincial government through strict fiscal discipline has generated billions of rupees in additional revenue in the last 19 months. He emphasized KP’s enormous hydroelectric capacity and noted that the government is working to utilize this energy for industrial development.
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A dedicated provincial transmission line is also added to deliver affordable electricity to industries aimed at generating new jobs. In addition, efforts are being made to explore oil and gas reserves for sustainable industrial growth.
In tourism, Gandapur pointed out that the sector provides great opportunities to improve provincial revenue. The work is underway to establish integrated tourist zones with international standards. For rural employment, he said, livestock and agriculture are prioritized, and for the first time a mountain policy has been introduced to strengthen agriculture in hilly regions.
Violation of government reforms, the minister of chief said, transparency and the delivery of services continue to be highest priorities. “We effectively use information and communication technology, and 29 sectors have already been digitized with more in progress,” he said.
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On the question of Afghan refugees, Gandapur noted that KP has hosted them for decades, but their return is a federal case. However, he emphasized that the process must be performed with dignity and care.
As for the merged districts, he said that promises given during their integration into KP remain unfulfilled. He repeated the demand for a new NFC price to ensure that the province gets its rightful share of resources.
Gandapur, who outlined public welfare initiatives, said that 100 percent of the provincial population is provided with the SEHAT card – a health insurance for free medical treatment.
He added that interest -free loans are expanded to citizens to home building, while the program RS14 billion has been launched to support young people with starting companies and technical training.
