The Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives has informed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that development allocations under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for 2025-26 will be capped at 2%, well below the 10% proposed by the Fund.
According to a news report, Federal Secretary for Planning and Member Coordination Awais Manzur Sumra briefed the Senate Standing Committee on Planning, chaired by Quratulain Marri, on Friday. He said the decision reflects resource constraints and prioritises financing ongoing projects of national importance.
Sumra noted that a review of PSDP 2024-25 had led to the closure or completion of 344 projects worth Rs2.52 trillion, reducing throw-forward liabilities by roughly Rs2.16 trillion. While a 10% cap on new projects is maintained, the effective allocation for 2025-26 stands at just 2% due to existing commitments.
The Secretary added that recommendations concerning Parliamentarians’ schemes fall under the Cabinet Division. The government will continue prioritising high-impact and fast-moving mega projects, with improvements including the adoption of automation tools, re-appropriations, and technical supplementary grants for slow-moving and near-completion projects.
Discussing the IMF’s Diagnostic Report, Sumra said the Fund highlighted issues such as poor project prioritisation, delays, rising costs, and weak protection of allocated funds throughout project lifecycles.
Senator Marri emphasised completing ongoing projects before launching new ones and praised the introduction of the Intelligent Project Automation System (IPAS), aimed at integrating and automating PSDP processes to enable more accurate budgeting and timely fund release.
