By NNN-APP,
Tokyo : Pakistan is currently engaged in holding talks with Japanese authorities insisting to expand the seize of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for South Asian country, said a senior official at Pakistani mission here on Friday.
The minister economic at Pakistan’s Mission Iftikhar Babar told APP that he is currently engaged in holding negotiations with Japanese authorities to further expand the volume of ODA 2008 by including some more developmental projects.
He further said that a high-level delegation from Japan presently in Pakistan was holding negotiations for cooperation in various development projects including areas of power and communication infrastructures under Japanese ODA programme.
A team of Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC) is holding talks to finalize projects to be initiated under ODA programme for 2008, he noted.
He said that the projects are under advance stage of consultation that most likely to be incorporated under $ 500 million ODA for Pakistan for 2008 are; New Khanki Barrage Rehabilitation, 500-KV Grid Station Construction Project (Lahore), 250-KV Johar Town Grid Station Construction project (Lahore), Secondary Transmission Lines and Grid Station Project (Gujranwala), Karachi Circular Railway Project and Rural Roads Project, Punjab, Phase-II.
Iftikhar Babar pointed out that the team will discuss and finalize these projects before incorporating these in ODA programme subject to their feasibility studies as well as successful holding of negotiations with executing agencies.