PESHAWAR: Provincial health and education ministers on Saturday paid their first visit to North and South Waziristan districts since they were merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province earlier this year, and announced various social development projects.
In May, Pakistan's parliament passed legislation to merge the country’s tribal belt along the Afghan border with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, a key step to ending the region’s colonial era governance system.
The KP health and education ministers announced multiple development projects during the visit to “compensate the tribal people for their matchless sacrifices during the years long military operation against militant."
The semi-autonomous region consists of seven big districts and six towns known as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and has been governed for over 150 years by colonial era laws. Over the past decade, Pakistan’s army has carried out many operations in FATA against militant groups that have used these areas as launching pads for attacks in Pakistan and across the border in Afghanistan.
After arriving in Miran Shah, the headquarters of North Waziristan, KP Health Minister Hisham Inamullah visited the District Headquarters Hospital and announced the appointment of lady doctors and a gynecologist and the creation of new vacancies for female staff in the female ward of the hospital.
Abdullah Shah, a tribal elder told Arab News by phone, that the minister also pledged to provide the hospital with state-of-the-art equipment and announced the upgrade of a hospital in Razmak.
“The minister announced Insaf Health Cards for the people of North Waziristan and announced the setting up of a trauma center, CT scan, dialysis and thalassemia centers at the main hospital,” another tribal elder Ali Jan said, referring to a public health insurance card.
Earlier, in his briefing to the visiting guests, Agency Surgeon Dr. Muhammad Younas said that 77 percent of health centers in the area were functional while 29 were non-functional.
Inamullah said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government was committed to making all health centers functional without further delay.
Separately, the KP Education Minister Ziaullah Bangash visited the adjacent South Waziristan tribal district where he announced the upgrade of the decades-old Government High School Wana.
Responding to widespread complaints about the existence of over 300 ghost schools in the tribal areas, the minister pledged that all resources would be employed to make these educational institutions functional.
“Past governments have ignored the development of the tribal region, but we are committed to bolstering the education sector here in line with the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan,” Bangash told tribal elders.
Ministers pay first visit to tribal belt since their merger with rest of country
Ministers pay first visit to tribal belt since their merger with rest of country
- In May, Pakistan passed law to align tribal regions with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
- Health and education ministers announce various uplift projects
Pakistan says defense pact with Saudi Arabia elevated brotherly ties to ‘new heights’
- Pakistan, Saudi Arabia signed strategic defense pact last year pledging aggression against one will be treated as attack on both
- Deputy PM Ishaq Dar says enduring bonds with Islamic and Arab nations form vital pillar of Pakistan’s foreign policy
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said on Wednesday that Pakistan’s defense pact with Saudi Arabia elevated its brotherly ties with the Kingdom to “new heights,” stressing that close ties with Arab and Islamic nations form a key pillar of Islamabad’s foreign policy.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement on Sept. 17 last year, pledging that aggression against one country would be treated as an attack on both, enhancing joint deterrence and formalizing decades of military and security cooperation.
Both nations agreed in October 2025 to launch an economic cooperation framework to strengthen trade and investment ties.
“In the Middle East, our landmark Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement with Saudi Arabia has elevated our brotherly ties to new heights,” Dar said while speaking at the Pakistan Governance Forum 2026 event in Islamabad.
The Pakistani deputy prime minister was speaking on the topic “Navigating International Relations Amidst Changing Geo-Politics.”
Dar noted that Pakistan has reinforced partnerships with other Middle Eastern nations such as the UAE, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Egypt and Bahrain. He said these partnerships have yielded “concrete agreements” in investment, agriculture, infrastructure, and energy sectors.
“Our enduring bonds with Islamic and Arab nations form a vital pillar of our foreign policy, and we will continue to expand our partnerships across Asia, Latin America, and Africa,” he said.
Dar pointed out that the presidents of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have undertaken visits to Pakistan in recent months, reflecting Central Asian nations’ desire to boost cooperation with Islamabad.
On South Asia, the Pakistani deputy PM said Pakistan has successfully transformed its fraternal ties with Bangladesh into “a substantive partnership.”
“Similarly, the trilateral mechanism involving China, Pakistan, and Bangladesh has been launched with a view to expanding and deepening regional cooperation and synergy,” the Pakistani minister said.
He said Islamabad has strengthened its “all-weather” partnership with China via the second phase of the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor agreement and “unwavering support” from both sides for each other’s core interests.
Dar said Pakistan had also reinvigorated its partnership with the US, advancing cooperation in trade, technology, investment, and regional stability.
“This calibrated approach has enhanced our ability to navigate complexity with skill and confidence, ensuring that our national interests are served without compromising our core foreign policy principles,” he said.
