By Jawad Ahmed ISLAMABAD, Feb. 08 (INP-WealthPK): To promote Pakistan’s economic growth, the National Highway Authority (NHA) has decided to encourage private investors to participate in the construction of highway, tunnel, bridge and motorway projects. In this regard, a Public Private Partnership (PPP) Cell has been established at the NHA headquarters to encourage private sector participation. This effort not only strengthens the PPPs, but also relieves the financial burden of development funds, which the government is keen to redirect to public-benefit projects. Last month, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved the 69km Sialkot (Sambrial)-Kharian Motorway project proposed by the Ministry of Communications, along with a direction to the NHA to share development on the business model to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC). ECNEC approved Rs43.382 billion for the project based on PPP. Federal Minister for Communications Murad Saeed said in a recent statement to media that during the three years of the current government, 1,753 kilometres roads have been completed. During this fiscal year, the NHA completed 27 projects and is expected to construct more than 3,000km roads in Balochistan. The NHA has launched this project to encourage private investors to invest in the construction of highways and motorways. Pakistan has formed a PPP Authority to oversee these matters. The massive China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) programs are important to the construction of motorways and national highways. In this regard, the NHA is helping to accelerate Pakistan's socio-economic growth by establishing various projects to connect highways and motorways to various parts of the country. According to the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP), in FY22, there are 68 ongoing projects with the cost of Rs155.42 billion out of which six projects are based on PPP. The NHA has successfully completed various projects with private sector investment totalling Rs135 billion in the last few years. In addition, nine other PPP projects with a total length of 1,726 kilometres are in the pipeline. The 790-kilometer Karachi-Quetta-Chaman Road (N-25) is being dualized and rehabilitated under a public-private partnership (PPP) at a cost of Rs200 billion. This initiative is significant not just for Pakistan, but also for the entire region. The feasibility report was completed in June, 2021 and the NHA awarded contracts by December 2021. The N-25 connects Karachi Port and Quetta, providing access to Afghanistan through Chaman. The project entails the building of a new carriageway as well as the repair of an existing road to make it a four-lane split carriageway where necessary. This project will help foster trade activities from Karachi Port to the landlocked countries of the region. The collaboration of public and private sectors in developing highways and motorways will not only foster the economic activity in the country but also help the government achieve the target to build and extend the road network by 2030. In line with the CPEC and CAREC programs, the NHA is a key player to promote trade activities by constructing and developing highways and motorways. In this regard, the NHA is on track to develop and construct new roads to connect Central Asian countries through road. In the long run, these efforts will be critical in transforming Pakistan into a truly regional commercial powerhouse.