The Sindh Provincial Working Group for the Development of Small & Mediumsized Enterprises (SMEs) held a meeting on 29 March 2022 in Karachi,
presided by Chief Secretary Sindh Syed Mumtaz Ali Shah.
The Provincial Working Group reviewed strategic recommendations and
approved a technical paper setting the strategic orientation for the Sindh SME
Development Strategy. The strategic orientations for SME development in
Sindh are based on a thorough analysis of SME performance using results of
a SME Competitiveness Survey, quantitative analyses, bilateral meetings with
key institutions. The Strategic orientation for the SME strategy are also derived
from consultations held in November 2021 in Karachi and Hyderabad with
more than 200 public and private stakeholders from agriculture, manufacturing
and services sectors of Sindh.
The Provincial working group approved the vision for the SME Development
strategy to promote “a prosperous Sindh powered by progressive and globally
competitive SMEs”. This vision is, driven by three strategic objectives: to
upscale SMEs, encourage digital transformation and skill upgradation; to
strengthen and expand a well-coordinated SME business support network; and
to increase inclusive and sustainable business practices.
The provincial working group also approved six thematic areas for detailed
action planning: Technology and Innovation, Digitalization, Access to Finance,
Entrepreneurial and Business Skills, Institutional and Business Development
Services, and Inclusive and Responsible Business.
Senior Officer Export Strategy at ITC, Charles Roberge said ‘’Any strategy is
as good as its implementation, and for this I am glad the working group has
come together to focus on planning for results. The technical paper is an interim
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milestone in formulating the SME strategy, which seeks to build up the enabling
ecosystem of SMEs in Sindh..‘’
Chief Secretary Sindh Syed Mumtaz Ali Shah was encouraged by the
progress, and said he was optimistic the Strategy will encapsulate the rural
SMEs in addition to those based in urban areas. He said: “‘Sindh SMEs
Competitiveness Strategy’ is aimed to be the cornerstone of the province plan
to build a conducive eco-system for SMEs in close collaboration between the
public and private sector. The consultative and prioritization efforts have
already contributed to identify for quick-win activities for assisting SMEs
rapidly.”
The private sector representatives highlighted a keen interest to take a leading
role in the design and implementation of SME Development Strategy.
President and CEO of Sindh Bank, Mr. Imran Samad stressed upon the greater
involvement of the private sector in governance of the initiative and said that
“the decision-making [on issues related to SMEs] development should engage
with the private sector”. This point was echoed by Member Planning and
Development Board Dr. Gul Mohammad Laghari, and SMEDA’s Provincial
Chief Mr. Mukesh Kumar
The Sindh SME Development Strategy is designed by the Government of
Sindh, under the leadership of the Department of Industries and Commerce.
This initiative is supported by Technical assistance from International Trade
Centre (ITC) through its Growth for Rural Advancement and Sustainable
Progress (GRASP) a project funded by the European Union.
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UNOPS
PRESS RELEASE
KOICA and UNOPS to enhance the capacity of
Government of Pakistan in provision of safe drinking
water
Funded by Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA),
UNOPS is working with the Ministry of Climate Change, PCRWR and
Public Health Engineering Departments (PHEDs) to help enhance
the technical capacities of the Government of Pakistan to provide
men, women, boys and girls with access to safe drinking water
• In partnership with KOICA, UNOPS Pakistan will also help the Ministry
of Climate Change to strengthen the technical and coordination capacity
of its WASH Cell to monitor drinking water quality in close collaboration
with provincial governments
• Under this project, KOICA and UNOPS will help the Government of
Pakistan make progress on the achievement of the Sustainable
Development Goal 6: “clean water and sanitation for all”, providing
people with safe drinking water and improving overall public health
In partnership with KOICA, UNOPS will utilize $4.4 million funding to address
the lack of clean water by procuring essential water-quality testing equipment
and upgrading the water-quality testing laboratories in Islamabad, Punjab and
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. The rollout of a Management Information
Software will strengthen the water-quality data management at provincial level
and enable the Ministry of Climate Change to coordinate and monitor the
drinking water quality in close collaboration with provincial governments in
Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The project is supporting the Sustainable Development Goals: 3 Good health
and wellbeing; and 6: Clean water and sanitation, and it is aligned with the
Pakistan Government’s Vision 2025 and the United Nations Sustainable
Development Framework for Pakistan 2018-2022 specifically Outcome 3:
Health and WASH..
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Mr. Joudat Ayaz, Additional Secretary of Ministry of Climate Change said:
“The Government of Pakistan is committed to actions tackling WASH issues
through the Clean Green Pakistan Initiative. Water management is a big
challenge both in quality and quantity, and therefore this project is a very timely
and meaningful partnership and can contribute to improving water
management in Pakistan.”
Mr. Seok Woong Yang, Country Director of KOICA Pakistan said:
“The Korean Government will continue to support the Government of Pakistan
in different sectors, especially in the water sector. I hope that this project will
improve people’s quality of life by enhancing water quality and will help in
achieving Sustainable Development Goals.”
Miss Marysia Zapasnik, UNOPS Country Manager for Pakistan, said:
“Access to adequate and safe drinking water is a human right and monitoring
the quality of drinking water is a first step towards its management. In Pakistan,
around 22 million people still live without access to clean and safe water. With
generous support from KOICA, we are delighted to support the Government of
Pakistan and specifically the Ministry of Climate Change in providing the
people of Pakistan with increased access to safe drinking water and improving
their quality of life.”
Notes to the editors:
Press contact details:
Arooj Zahra
Communications Officer, UNOPS Pakistan
Email: aroojz@unops.org
About KOICA
The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) is a leading
development cooperation agency to achieve global social values. KOICA’s
mandate is to contribute to the advancement of international cooperation
through various projects that build friendly and collaborative relationships and
mutual exchanges between Korea and partner countries and support the
economic and social development in partner countries. Read more:
www.koica.go.kr
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About UNOPS
UNOPS mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve
peace and sustainable development. We help the United Nations,
governments and other partners to manage projects, and deliver sustainable
infrastructure and procurement in an efficient way. Read more: www.unops.org