Ecnec clears 10 projects worth Rs472bn

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) on Wednesday approved 10 development projects, mostly related to the rehabilitation and reconstruction of flood-hit areas and pre-poll public support, with an estimated cost of about Rs472 billion. This also includes a Rs160bn foreign-funded project for the construction of more than 565,000 fully or partially damaged houses in Sindh with a World Bank loan of $500 million. The meeting of the Ecnec presided over by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar also approved a major pre-poll initiative – National Development Internship Programme – to induct about 20,000 youth as interns in the development projects at a total cost of about Rs9bn. The financial impact would be met through contingency allocations in all development projects.