Pakistan receives ‘full support’ for Malakand project

 “We are glad that the project has drawn considerable support from our friends. The important aspect is that all friends agree that the implementation of this project will be necessary not only in terms of rebuilding infrastructure but also in addressing the root causes of violence and extremism,” an official from the Pakistani foreign ministry said at a press briefing on the meeting of the Friends of Democratic Pakistan group (FoDP), which opened in İstanbul yesterday.

Business meetings were under way in parallel to senior officials' meeting on Aug. 24, with prominent businessmen from Pakistan, Turkey and other countries representing different sectors. Officials said the morning session focused on energy projects. An official from the Turkish Foreign Ministry reminded that a Turkish company, Zorlu Energy Group, developed the first windmill project in Pakistan.

He also said Güven Sak, director of the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV) and professor of economics at the Ankara-based Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges University of Economics and Technology (TOBB ETÜ), and Ambassador Nasir Alihan from the Pakistani Foreign Ministry will make presentations on public-private partnership.

Pakistan's defense spending increased more than 5 percent against the envisaged target of 4.3 percent of the GDP for 2008-2009 due to the military operation in Malakand to drive out militants, Pakistani officials said. “All the members of the FoDP would like to see the process carried forward in a robust manner so that tangible results can be achieved for the people of Pakistan,” said an official from the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

 The first ministerial meeting of the FoDP was held in Tokyo on April 17, and following that meeting Pakistan formed various working groups on development, energy, infrastructure, security and trade. Introduced in İstanbul by Pakistan yesterday, the Malakan project aims at integrating the studies of the working groups, officials added.

The FoDP was launched in New York in September 2008, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session. Its members are Pakistan, Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the UK, the US, the European Commission, the European Union, the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank and the World Bank.

Pakistan had requested assistance worth $2 billion during the current fiscal year 2009-10, but Pakistani officials said yesterday that they would welcome any assistance given by governments while at the same time they would like to have reconstruction opportunity zones built in the area so Pakistan's socio-economic development will be sustainable in the years to come.

As an inducement for investors, Pakistani officials noted that there are more than 100 British, more than 120 Chinese and about 40 US companies working in Pakistan and making huge profits.

“I don't recall that in the last 10 or 20 years a single multinational company left Pakistan. After the successful law enforcement operations in Swat and Malakand, the security situation has improved a lot. The overall atmosphere is good for foreign investors, and security issues are confined to small pockets in the north,” a Pakistani official said.

About the specifics of the Malakand project, officials said they range from infrastructure to health, education and security issues, including determining how many hospitals are required and how many more law enforcement personnel are needed in how many more police stations.

Turkish officials said the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA) is present in Pakistan together with an active Turkish Red Crescent branch and several non-governmental organizations training teachers and building hospitals.

The US special representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke, participated in a dinner at the FoDP meeting last night hosted by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu. Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon is also attending the FoDP meeting, which will end today, in addition to the Iranian and Swedish foreign ministers.