News: Agreements inked with US for long-term economic growth
Name of the Newspaper: The News
Date of publication: Tuesday, Aug 01, 2006

ISLAMABAD: The United States would provide $13.7 million to Pakistan for the development of higher education and research and provision of loans for small businesses throughout the country.

In this regard two agreements were signed here on Tuesday.

The first agreement was a part of the US government’s five- year $73 million economic growth assistance package to Pakistan. The second was a memorandum of understanding to allow the Competitiveness Support Fund (CSF) to partner with the Higher Education Commission (HEC) in support of initiatives that promote knowledge-based economic development and ensures long-term economic growth.

“The people of the United States are exited to see a growing, vibrant Pakistani economy. The United States’ economic growth programmes in Pakistan will continue to help business growth and reduce poverty,” said US Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker while witnessing the signing ceremony.

Minister of State for Finance Omar Ayub Khan was also present. The bilateral agreement for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)’s economic growth commits $13.7 million in support to Pakistan for 2006.

The funding would enable USAID to provide over 130,000 loans for small businesses in the provinces and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and continue support to promising industries throughout Pakistan.

The funding would enable assistance to more than 50,000 farmers in drought-affected areas of Balochistan with new seeds, livestock and irrigation systems.

The second signing, the CSF, led by the minister of state and supported by the USAID’s economic growth programme. “The main thrust of the initiative is to build linkages between business and academia,” said Omar Ayub, who is also chairman of the CSF.

He said such linkages would spark the kind of information sharing that made business more dynamic and supported the commercialisation of innovations developed at Pakistani universities and research institutions.

“Our partnership with the CSF will bring a new dimension to the HEC that should help our researchers attract better financing and shape their work to more directly meet the needs of our society and the (national) economy,” said chairman HEC, Dr Attaur Rehman.

He said the cooperation between business and academia had generated tremendous innovation in the countries that had developed it, not just in the US and Europe, but also in places like India, Thailand and Turkey. “That’s why Pakistan could not afford to ignore these successes,” Dr Atta-ur-Rehman added.

The main objectives of the CSF are to develop and support linkages between academia and industry for knowledge-based enterprise development. The fund would work for the HEC to provide technical assistance by engaging foreign experts to support projects promoting knowledge-based enterprises in Pakistan.

The HEC and the fund would work jointly to establish a forum for the identification of research-based projects that would further develop knowledge-based economy.