Houses to poor a national service: PM

ISLAMABAD – Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that promoting construction sector and providing houses to poor segments of the society is a national service.

He was chairing a weekly meeting of National Coordination Committee on Housing and Construction here yesterday.

The PM directed to further accelerate the awareness campaign regarding the easy loans being provided by the banks for construction of houses.

He said it is the first time in the country’s history that the commercial banks are extending loans to the poor for construction of houses.

On the occasion, Governor State Bank of Pakistan Reza Baqir informed the meeting that the commercial banks through their 7,700 branches across the country have started providing loans to the people for construction of houses. It was informed that the commercial banks have started receiving loan applications in big numbers.

The State Bank of Pakistan has launched a complaint portal to address the public complaints.

The Vice Chairman Lahore Development Authority informed the meeting, a total of 35,000 units will be established in LDA city and a major portion will be given to the poor and middle class.

In the initial phase, 4,000 units will be constructed. The project will be completed by June 2022.

Earlier, a delegation of the UN Development Program dealing with Digital Governance, called on the prime minister.

During the meeting, the prime minister said Pakistan is committed to using digital technologies to achieve sustainable development goals.

Reiterating the importance of digital solutions for improved governance, the PM said these will also help the vulnerable segments of the society to get maximum benefit from the social welfare and social protection policies of the government at the grass roots level.

The PM appreciated the UNDP’s partnership in development of a digital transformation roadmap for the country.

Meanwhile, chairing a meeting of National Coordination Committee on Small and Medium Enterprises here, the prime minister stressed for promoting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to improve the economic indicators which are already on positive trajectory.

He directed to achieve at the earliest the targets set for the promotion of SMEs.

He said the SMEs are an important component of economy and their promotion will strengthen economy and create job opportunities.

The meeting was informed that the database of the SMEs is being updated on priority basis in order to extend timely facilities to them. The tax form of the SMEs is being simplified for them.

The meeting was informed that the process of consultations with all the stakeholders is underway to extend financial assistance to the small and medium enterprises. In this regard, SMEs fund will also be created.

The meeting was informed that Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) is being restructured to further enhance its capacity.