The Sindh government in Karachi increased the development budget to Rs959.1 billion. This is 30.5% higher than the previous year’s Rs735 billion. Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah announced the budget.
He said there will be no new projects in the Annual Development Programme (ADP). Instead, the focus will be on completing ongoing projects from the last 10 years.
Breakdown of the budget shows Rs493 billion for provincial ADP and Rs55 billion for district ADP. Foreign project assistance is Rs334 billion and federal PSDP schemes are Rs76.9 billion.
The provincial ADP increased by 29.7% to Rs493 billion from Rs380 billion in FY24. The revenue expenditure for FY25 is estimated at Rs1,912.4 billion, up from Rs1,411 billion last year.
This increase happened because things cost more now. The government is also giving more money to places like hospitals and universities. Government workers will get more money to help with living costs, and retirees will get more money too.
ADP Allocates Rs80 Billion for Schemes Needing Additional Funds: Report
The budget papers talk about 4,250 projects that are still happening, with a total of Rs305.49 billion set aside for them. There are also 395 projects from last year that the government hasn’t approved yet. These projects have Rs92.87 billion set aside for this year.
There are 552 ongoing schemes where over 70% of the expenditure is done. These schemes will be fully funded for completion by June 2025.
849 ongoing schemes with a throw-forward of less than Rs50 million are also fully funded for completion by June 2025. Similarly, 858 small-nature ongoing schemes will be completed by June 2025.
Schemes without tenders issued or needing cost increases will get additional funds from a block allocation of Rs80 billion in ADP.
Transport Sector Gets Rs60.4B Boost in Sindh’s FY25 Budget
Out of 4,644 schemes in ADP 2024-25, around 1,812 schemes have full funds and are likely to be completed in FY 2024-25.
The provincial government allocated Rs32.163 billion for education sector schemes in FY25, up from Rs13.82 billion in the current ADP. Transport and communication sector allocation for FY25 is Rs60.4 billion, a significant increase from Rs2.2 billion.
Water and sanitation and road sector allocations in local government schemes increased to Rs71.959 billion in FY25 from Rs15.7 billion in FY24.
Public Health Engineering Department’s water and sanitation sector got Rs22 billion compared to Rs3.26 billion in the previous fiscal year.
The budget paper states, “A big chunk of funds would be used for construction of new roads and improving the conditions of the existing structure.” The health sector schemes received Rs18 billion, up from Rs2.72 billion in FY24.
To read our blog on “Non-filers face penalties in a strict new budget crackdown,” click here.
