Pakistan and the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) have signed three agreements worth approximately 603 million US dollars.
According to sources, these agreements are aimed at financing the M-6 Sukkur-Hyderabad Motorway project, a poverty alleviation program for extremely poor and flood-affected households, and a project for out-of-school children in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Sources from the Ministry of Economic Affairs Division stated that these agreements were finalized in Islamabad following high-level negotiations, led by Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Ahad Cheema, and IsDB Vice President, Dr. Rami Ahmed, along with a delegation from the bank.
The formal signing of the project agreements was carried out by Dr. Rami Ahmed, Vice President of IsDB, and Muhammad Humair Karim, Secretary of the Economic Affairs Division. Present at the occasion were Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Cheema, Federal Minister for Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection Syed Imran Ahmed Shah, and other senior officials.
Under the agreements, IsDB will provide 475 million dollars for the M-6 Sukkur-Hyderabad Motorway, a key section of the proposed Peshawar-Karachi Motorway. In addition, an agreement was signed to launch the poverty alleviation project for extremely poor and flood-affected households, marking a historic step. The project aims to move extremely poor households away from reliance on cash assistance toward sustainable employment, economic self-sufficiency, and climate resilience.
The total cost of the project is 134.2 million dollars, of which 118.4 million dollars will be provided by IsDB. The project will be implemented in 25 districts, including 20 districts selected based on the 2024 Multidimensional Poverty Index and 5 districts affected by floods in 2022 and 2025.
The project will reach 160,866 households and create 100,000 employment opportunities, including asset support, interest-free loans, skills training, rainwater harvesting, climate-smart agriculture, and support from institutions providing business services.
Under another agreement, IsDB will provide 10 million dollars for the out-of-school children project in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, which will bring approximately 60,000 children back to school and train 4,000 teachers.
Dr. Rami Ahmed stated that the bank is keen to further expand cooperation with Pakistan in areas of mutual interest. The Federal Minister expressed gratitude for IsDB’s continued support for Pakistan.
