41st Meeting of Public Private Partnership (PPP) Steering Committee was held in the 8-Club, GOR-I, Lahore under the Chairmanship of Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht, Minister for Finance, Punjab. The meeting was attended by Salman Shah (Advisor to Chief Minister on Economic Affairs and Planning & Development), Habib-ur-Rahman Gillani Chairman Planning & Development Board, Dr. Farrukh Naveed Member, PPP-P&D Board, Professor Dr. Abid Aman Burki (LUMS), and other senior officials of government departments.
Government of the Punjab is committed to stimulate private investments through public private partnerships (PPPs), and in this regards, on the second day of new fiscal year, PPP Steering Committee accorded approval of ten (10) projects with estimated worth of PKR. 138.60 Million to be executed under PPP mode related to transport, urban development and road sector. PPP Steering Committee approved funding requests from Project Development Facility (PDF) amounting to PKR. 302 Million for these 10 projects. PDF will be utilized by the relevant government departments for project development and transaction execution under PPP mode.
The committee accorded concept approval for landmark project “Punjab Police Integrated Command, Control & Communication Center (PPIC3) Rawalpindi” under PPP mode. The project will introduce smart traffic management system and alongside modernize the infrastructure and capabilities for the Punjab police to proactively manage the security situations.
The committee also approved draft Viability Gap Fund (VGF) guidelines prepared by PPP Cell in consultation with Finance Department and Asian Development Bank (ADB). The government has established VGF to bridge the financial viability gap for projects which are suitable for implementation under PPP mode having strong economic and social justification but may not be financially viable.