Zero impact: Doubling of paltry UK aid to Pakistan. Power generation should be doubled.

Posted on April 25, 2008 by Moin Ansari

THE UK NEEDS TO DO MORE

Taking cue from the US, the UK is also doubling the paltry aid to Pakistan. Britain will also invest in the power sector of Pakistan with an enhancement of a few hundred MW. Pakistan needs 10,000 MW of electricity, and with all the tall promises of help, no assistance has been provided in the sectors of solar and wind energy.

However neither country has voiced any comments on debt forgiveness or building 1000 new hospitals, 50,000 shools, dams, and 50 new world class universities in Pakistan. The meagre aid will barely take care of the subsistance level of existence of the millions who eek out a living on the threshold of penury and poverty.

The Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZ) are stalled in paperwork, and the neither the US nor the UK has catered to Pakistan’s request for a FTA. The US also refuses to lift or eliminate the subsidy to its cotton farmers, which would allow textile exports to America. 

Pakistan’s debt of $38 Billion remains intact. The UK should eliminate this debt.

How can the FC fight, if it does not have the proper tools? The US also has not provided arms, ammunition, helicopters, guns, UAVs to the Frontier Corp that is unable to fight the war on terror with WW2 vintage equipment.

 UK’s International Power to invest more in Pakistan By our correspondent 25 April 2008 ISLAMABAD — The International Power (IP) of the United Kingdom has decided to invest more in Pakistan to expand Kapco by 400 megawatts and Uch power plant by 600 megawatts to meet the future growing demand of electricity.

 This was stated by Vince Haris, Regional Managing Director (Asia) of International Power Plc, UK, who called on Water and Power Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf in Islamabad yesterday.

Haris also stated that Pakistan had become an attractive power investment destination and stated that the company had also decided to put investment for a 200-megawatt project near Sialkot, to be completed on a fast-track basis.

He also shared the future investment strategy for power generation expansion in Pakistan with the minister, wherein local and imported coal projects are a high priority.

The minister appreciated the investment confidence of International Power in Pakistan and asked it to look into the possibility of investment in indigenous coal-fired power generation.

Ashraf would also attend an international conference on coal, proposed in June 2008. He said that the power sector had a great potential and the government would facilitate investors in this sector and provide all possible assistance and cooperation.

International Power investment holdings in Pakistan comprise Hub Power Company or Hubco (1,292 megawatts), Kot Addu Power Company or Kapco (1,638 megawatts) and Uch (586 megawatts). Meanwhile, the British Government, in support of Pakistan’s transition to democracy, has decided to provide £30 million as budgetary support before the end of the current financial year. At a meeting with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in Islamabad today, the British High Commissioner, Robert Brinkley indicated that British assistance to Pakistan gradually over three years would be doubled to £480 million under arrangements between the two governments for long term development partnership for ten years.

The assistance would be utilized for reducing poverty, improving financial management and fortifying the principles of democracy. The two sides agreed to put in place a mechanism to make the assistance performance oriented.

Economic cooperation for high quality technical capacity development, reducing poverty, strengthening financial management and accountability, increasing incomes of the poor, service delivery in education and health under countries assistance plan to achieve Millennium Development Goals consistent with PRSP and MTDF was also discussed.

Pakistan appreciated Department for International Development (DFID) strategy to achieve poverty reduction. Senator Dar resolved to accelerate efforts to achieve targets set out in Millennium Development Goals. He appreciated UK’s £160 million assistance under Pak-UK development partnership agreement.

Various development assistance programmes of UK figured in the meeting.

They include £60 million national health and population facility to support health and population programmes, £80 million budgetary support for poverty reduction spread over three years.

Also included is DFID’s £90 million for maternal and neo-natal health.

Filed under: Current Affairs, Pak CA | Tagged: ,

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9 Responses to “Zero impact: Doubling of paltry UK aid to Pakistan. Power generation should be doubled.”

  1. Kashmiri siya, on April 25th, 2008 at 3:17 am Said:

    Now pakistan has a Big katora in his hand!!

    GO around begging

    and write blogs and show how much u earned from alms

    1)china :300 milion$

    2)USA:1 billion $ yearly

    3)UK:100 million $

    and what is paki doing themselves???

    begging :)

    keep going !!

    pakistan is soon to become a super islamic power!!

  2. Another Kashmir Shia, on April 25th, 2008 at 10:33 am Said:

    “suchai jhup nahin sukti banawat keh asoolon seh

    kushboo aa nahin suktee kaghaz keh phoolon seh”

    ———————————–
    NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India’s external debt at the end of December 2007 stood at $201.4 billion, a rise of $10.3 billion over the quarter, a finance ministry statement said on Monday.

    It said the external debt increased by $31.8 billion to the end of December from $169.7 billion at end-March 2007.

    ——
    batt keh rahey gaa hindustaan
    kashmir banay ga pakistan
    —
    Aik jaan two ghalib. Can never be seperated for each other.

    http://www.rupeenews.com

    India bans Pakistan cable channels. Ganging Act of Brtish Rule in the Subcontinent revived

    Apparently the channels have been banned in the “largest democracy in the world” because the Pakistani channels discussed and showed the mass graves of Kashmiris. The mass graves are for victims of the excesses of the 100,000 Indian security forces that are present in Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

    Obviously the present puppet government in Occupied Jammu and Kashmir does not want the denizens of the valley to be aware that the Indian Security forces murdered and then buried innocent Kashmiri civilians in mass graves.

    ——
    batt keh rahey gaa hindustaan
    Kashmir banay ga pakistan
    —
    Aik jaan two ghalib. Can never be seperated for each other.

    http://www.rupeenews.com

  3. Kashmiri siya, on April 25th, 2008 at 12:26 pm Said:

    At least india is not begging with katora and economy is stable!

    but zunaid ,u missed out 1 most important thing about

    201 billion $ debt!(18% of indian GDP)

    it was 167 billion $ in march

    and increased by 33 billion $ !

    it was not bought by indian govt unlike pak is doing ! i know pak still has some 40 billion $ of dept!!(33+% of GDP)

    Indian companies are becoming MNC and they are raising money in form of bond and loans to acquire companies outside india!

    and unlike china india doesnt have a sovereign fund !

    and West doesn’t sell comanies to china as they are comfortable in selling to india!

    Reason:India is using right methods!indian companis take fast loans which from western companies and they help in M&A!even india has 315 billion $ Forex ,and they can use this funds to buy ,but they don’t

    Think before you post!

  4. Kashmiri siya, on April 25th, 2008 at 12:29 pm Said:

    Read the short term and commercial borrowing by Indian MNC

    http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-32769820080331

    NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India’s external debt at the end of December 2007 stood at $201.4 billion, a rise of $10.3 billion over the quarter, a finance ministry statement said on Monday.

    It said the external debt increased by $31.8 billion to the end of December from $169.7 billion at end-March 2007.

    The statement said the increase was mainly due to commercial borrowing and short-term debt.

  5. Kashmiri siya, on April 25th, 2008 at 12:34 pm Said:

    These lines are from the second last para of article:

    The share of government debt in total external debt stood at 26.3 per cent or $ 53 billion, while private debt was 73.7 per cent or $ 148.5 billion.

    so

    MNC/private companies:148.5 billion$ and they have bought
    companies outside!so they will pay from the money they will earn from outside

    indian govt:has 315 billion$ forex ,but it has to pay only 53 billion$

    http://in.rediff.com/money/2008/mar/31debt.htm

    March 31, 2008 17:28 IST

    With spurt in overseas borrowings by corporates and rupee appreciation against major currencies, India’s external debt has gone up by $ 31.8 billion in the first nine months of the fiscal to $ 201.4 billion (about Rs 7,94,017 crore).

    It implies that with total population of about 110 crore, per capita debt on each Indian stood at Rs 7,218.

    According to a Finance Ministry statement, the external debt stood at $ 169.7 billion at end-March 2007 and increased by $ 10.3 billion in the third quarter this fiscal.

    In fact, the rupee appreciation led to rise in external debt by $ 6 billion during April-December 2007. The long term debt rose by $ 6.3 billion to $ 166.2 billion, while short-term debt increased by $ 4 billion to $ 35.2 billion over the third quarter.

    Amongst the components of long-term debt that accounted for 82.6 per cent of the total debt, commercial borrowings increased by $ 4.9 billion (9.4 per cent) to $ 57 billion during the nine months.

    The share of government debt in total external debt stood at 26.3 per cent or $ 53 billion, while private debt was 73.7 per cent or $ 148.5 billion.

    The share of US dollar in the external debt portfolio continued to show an increasing trend going up to 54.5 per cent at end-December 2007 from 52 per cent at end-March 2007.

    While NRI deposits declined by 1.5 per cent at $ 43 billion, multilateral debt, bilateral debt and export credit increased marginally to reach $ 37.9 billion, $ 17.3 billion and $ 8.9 billion respectively at end-December 2007

  6. Kashmiri siya, on April 25th, 2008 at 12:40 pm Said:

    http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008%5C02%5C07%5Cstory_7-2-2008_pg5_1

    ISLAMABAD: Ministry of Finance has warned that large infrastructure projects envisaged in the next decade (including big dams) would increase the external debt burden if sufficient revenues are not generated from within the country.

    The first quarter of FY08 saw an increase of External Debt Liabilities (EDLs) by 3.7 percent to $41.67 billion.

    SO all this 41+ billion $ is with goverment for buying chinese missiles and producing atom bombs :)

    or are there any pakistani MNC raising money to acquire western companies?

  7. Kashmiri siya!!, on April 25th, 2008 at 12:45 pm Said:

    ISLAMABAD: Ministry of Finance has warned that large infrastructure projects envisaged in the next decade (including big dams) would increase the external debt burden if sufficient revenues are not generated from within the country.

    The first quarter of FY08 saw an increase of External Debt Liabilities (EDLs) by 3.7 percent to $41.67 billion.

    so all 42 billion $ in stomach of zardari and sharif??

    i doubt there are any MNC who have used this money for M&A

  8. moinansari, on April 25th, 2008 at 1:58 pm Said:

    http://rupeenews.com/2008/04/15/india-a-budget-fit-for-a-superpower/

    Oh yes!, bad in math too. The current debt is $38 billion. The ROI on dams and infrastructure development pays for itself.

  9. moinansari, on April 25th, 2008 at 2:10 pm Said:

    BTW: We are so happy that you treat your females so well!

    http://rupeenews.com/2008/04/15/indian-girl-infanticide-female-foeticide-1-million-girls-killed-before-or-after-birth-per-year/

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