KARACHI: Syed Murad Ali Shah, the chief minister of Sindh, and Ms. Fatou Haidara, the deputy director general and managing director of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), have agreed to strengthen their collaboration on inclusive economic growth, climate-resilient infrastructure, rural development, and job creation. UNIDO intends to raise about $40 million for a special development program for Sindh under its Program for Country Partnership (PCP) 2025–2030.
The agreement was reached during a meeting at the CM House where the two parties discussed the expansion of successful development interventions, examined new areas of cooperation to improve livelihoods and create sustainable economic opportunities for vulnerable communities, and reviewed progress under the Poverty Alleviation and Inclusive Development Across Rural Sindh (PAIDAR) program funded by the European Union.
Provincial Minister for Labor Saeed Ghani, Minister for P&D Jam Khan Shoro, Special Assistant to CM on Investment Syed Qasim Naveed, Chairman of P&D Najam Shah, Secretary to CM Asif Jameel, Secretary for Social Protection Khadim Channa, and Additional Secretary for Investment Zahoor Marri were present at the meeting.
Mr. Jie Zhao, Chief of the Asia-Pacific Region; Mr. Badar-ul-Islam, UNIDO Officer-in-Charge; and Mr. Farooque Ahmed Siddiqui, National Technical Advisor for PAIDAR, were among the members of the UNIDO delegation.
After the terrible floods of 2022, the Chief Minister greeted the delegation and expressed gratitude for UNIDO’s ongoing collaboration with the Government of Sindh, especially its support for enterprise development, rural communities, and climate-resilient infrastructure.
Minister P&D Jam Khan Shoro informed the meeting that PAIDAR, implemented by UNIDO with a €49.55 million grant from the European Union, is working across Thatta, Sujawal, Badin, Tharparkar, and Larkana districts to reduce poverty, strengthen local economies, improve public services, and create employment opportunities for women and young people.
The programme combines investment in rural infrastructure and community facilities with financial grants for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), technical assistance, and institutional capacity-building.
The Chief Minister appreciated the programme’s contribution to rebuilding flood-affected communities through climate-resilient settlement planning in collaboration with the Sindh People’s Housing for Flood Affectees (SPHF). He also acknowledged its support for rural entrepreneurs seeking to establish new businesses or expand existing enterprises.
CM Special Assistant Syed Qasim Naveed highlighted examples of beneficiaries who had converted financial assistance into viable businesses. These included a woman entrepreneur who opened a restaurant in Badin and an entrepreneur in Larkana who set up a pasta-making facility linked to a flour mill.
He said these initiatives showed how targeted financial assistance, business development support, and market access could create livelihoods and stimulate economic activity in rural Sindh.
The meeting was informed that Community Resilient Settlement Development Plans (CRSDPs) had been prepared for approximately 300 villages across the five PAIDAR districts, providing a foundation for climate-informed planning, resilient infrastructure, and improved community services.
Following the development of a model village at Lakho Bhambhro in Thatta in collaboration with SPHF, UNIDO is supporting the expansion of the approach to an additional 100 villages.
The model village initiative integrates essential community infrastructure, including safe drinking water, sanitation, drainage, roads, energy-efficient facilities, and other improvements designed to enhance living conditions and strengthen resilience to climate-related risks.
The programme is also supporting the development of Rural Growth Centres (RGCs) to improve access to public services, strengthen local economic activity, and create opportunities for enterprise development.
The Chief Minister appreciated the integrated approach and stressed the importance of ensuring that community infrastructure and livelihood initiatives deliver lasting benefits to rural populations.
In a significant employment-related initiative, the meeting was informed that PAIDAR would support skills development for 200 young people from the five target districts through reputable training institutions.
The proposed nine-to-12-month training programmes will focus on emerging and market-oriented trades, including hospitality, electric vehicles, solar technologies, and other sectors with strong employment and entrepreneurship potential.
The initiative is intended to equip young people with practical skills relevant to evolving labour-market requirements, enabling them to pursue jobs, establish businesses, and contribute to local economic development.
The Chief Minister welcomed the initiative and emphasised the importance of aligning skills training with market demand and emerging investment opportunities in Sindh.
The meeting also reviewed UNIDO’s technical assistance for the development of the Sindh Development Portfolio Management System (SDPMS), being implemented in collaboration with the Planning and Development Department.
The digital platform is designed to modernise the management of the provincial development portfolio by integrating key stages of the development project cycle, including planning, appraisal, approvals, documentation, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting.
The system supports the digital processing of PC-I to PC-V documents and aims to improve transparency, administrative efficiency, accountability, and evidence-based decision-making in the implementation of development schemes.
Chairman P&D Najam Shah informed the meeting that the system had been operational for approximately one and a half months and was being used across government departments and project implementation units.
He further informed the Chief Minister that work on two important components – the development and testing of a mobile application and the integration of an artificial intelligence tool – was at an advanced stage.
The meeting was informed that the system had expanded to cover 3,715 active development schemes, with approximately 250 users. Its capabilities include digital processing of development proposals, online monitoring and reporting, re-appropriation workflows, and support for departmental and provincial development forums.
A major focus of the meeting was the development of a dedicated programme for Sindh under UNIDO’s Programme for Country Partnership for 2025–2030.
The Chief Minister was briefed by Ms. Fatou Haidara that Pakistan has signed the PCP framework with UNIDO and that the organisation planned to create a programme tailored to Sindh based on the development priorities and needs of the province.
She added that UNIDO planned to raise about $40 million for the proposed programme.
The chief minister stated that it is prepared to seek the initiative’s approval as a priority development programme and to pursue it in collaboration with the Ministry of Climate Change and other pertinent federal stakeholders.