The Prime Minister said three decades back South Asian leadership had made commitment to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development of our region.
Advertisement
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday approved the construction of as many as 39 hospitals in the country in 18 months.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation. The Prime Minister directed that Federal Government should complete the structure and run this hospital; the Prime Minister also approved allocation of funds for completing this hospital within next 18 months.
Nawaz Sharif said in this era of globalization, the world focuses on finding regional solution to common problems. The interdependence calls for an ever greater cohesion among the SAARC member states, he stressed.
He said that to optimally harness this potential for peace and prosperity of the people, Saarc provides platform to work collectively to make the region free of economic constraints and social ills.
He also expressed the confidence that deliberations of Finance Ministers would complement the agenda of 19th SAARC summit, which Pakistan will host in Islamabad on November 9 and 10. He said that South Asia’s resources are not being used according to requirement.
Ishaq Dar said the proposals to be finalized in today’s meeting will be presented before the SAARC summit to be held in November in Islamabad. Dar expressed the confidence that the vision of South Asian Economic Union will promote economic cooperation, investment and connectivity among the regional countries. By the grace of Allah Almighty, we are consolidating the gains of economic turnaround, energy self-sufficiency and infrastructure development for alleviating poverty and reducing unemployment, and addressing the long neglected healthcare infrastructure in the country for eliminating the woes of disease stricken masses.
Nine Observers of SAARC have also been invited to attend the Summit.
The Prime Minister said that his Office and Ministry of Finance would jointly allocate funds for construction of these hospitals.
However, the finance secretaries of the SAARC member states on Thursday discussed the current status of economic and financial cooperation in the region.
The Prime Minister said he would personally monitor the progress on hospitals in Islamabad, Rawalpindi and other parts of the country.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has said SAARC Finance Ministers’ conference has promoted economic and trade cooperation among the member states.
