PESHAWAR (Dunya News) - Four Khyber Pakhtunkhwa departments have signed performance agreements under the chief minister’s Good Governance Roadmap, setting targets for improvements in higher education, local government, tourism and social welfare.
The agreements were signed in a ceremony attended by Local Government and Higher Education Minister Meena Khan Afridi, Social Welfare Adviser Liaquat Ali Khan, Special Assistant to the Chief Minister for Tourism Adil Iqbal, Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah and the relevant administrative secretaries.
Under the Social Welfare Department’s performance framework, 10 Dar-ul-Amans will be upgraded, three non-functional shelters will be made operational and three meals a day will be ensured at 15 centres.
The department will also improve the Peshawar Centre of Excellence for Autism, upgrade three special education institutions and outsource five others. In addition, 124 industrial training centres across the province will be modernized.
Under the tourism framework, master plans for Galiyat, Kaghan and Kumrat will be completed, while daily waste collection will be introduced at major tourist destinations. Integrated tourism zones (ITZs) in Thandiani and Ganool will be fast-tracked, and seven rest areas will be made operational.
The local government sector will launch a digital platform to monitor the collection and management of 7,000 tonnes of waste daily. Covers will also be installed on 6,200 manholes in urban areas.
Construction of four modern landfill sites has been targeted in Kohat, Peshawar, Abbottabad and Mardan.
In higher education, five underperforming colleges will be outsourced, while two colleges will be converted into institutions specializing in applied sciences. More than 1,000 BS students will be provided industrial internships.
Incubators will be made operational at five universities, while the government has set a target of launching a pilot project for research commercialization by the end of the year.
Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah said the agreements were an important step toward strengthening the accountability system, adding that the departments would be required to complete the targets within the stipulated timelines.