LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar inaugurated the country’s first metro train line, the Orange Line, in Lahore on Sunday, with train services to begin for the public on Monday.
Part-funded by China, the Orange Line is a rapid mass transit system that the government hopes will ease travel in Pakistan’s second largest city where over 11 million people live.
A quarter of a million people are expected to use the 27 km train track for travel every day.
The construction of the Orange Line, which began in 2015, has been mired in controversy over the years, leading to forced evictions and threatening a large number of Lahore’s protected heritage sites, historic buildings and minority places of worship.
The Imran Khan led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf, which was in opposition when work on the metro began, had vociferously opposed the construction of the project kickstarted by the previous Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government.
In 2016, campaigners and the United Nations succeeding in getting the track’s construction temporarily halted in a bid to protect 11 buildings of historical value.
The Orange Line Metro Train is the first transport project under the $60 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), central to China’s Belt and Road Initiative to develop land and sea trade routes in Asia and beyond.
Public transport remains inadequate across most Pakistani cities and a rapidly urbanising population has left roads choked with traffic.
Pakistan’s first metro train line opens in Lahore
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Pakistan’s first metro train line opens in Lahore
- A quarter of a million people are expected to travel through the metro train in Pakistan’s second biggest city
- Construction of the China funded metro was mired in controversy over the years, with forced evictions and the endangerment of historical sites
Pakistan, ADB sign $730 loan agreements to boost SOE reforms, energy infrastructure
- Both sign $330 million Power Transmission Strengthening Project and $400 million SOE Transformation Program loan agreements
- Economic Affairs Division official says Transmission Project will secure Pakistan’s energy future by strengthening national grid’s backbone
KARACHI: Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday signed two loan agreements totaling $730 million to boost reforms in state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and energy infrastructure in the country, the bank said.
The first of the two agreements pertains to the SOE Transformation Program worth $400 million while the second loan, worth $330 million, is for a Power Transmission Strengthening Project, the lender said.
The agreements were signed by ADB Country Director for Pakistan Emma Fan and Pakistan’s Secretary of Economic Affairs Division Humair Karim.
“The agreements demonstrate ADB’s enduring commitment to supporting sustainable and inclusive economic growth in Pakistan,” the ADB said.
Pakistan’s SOEs have incurred losses worth billions of dollars over the years due to financial mismanagement and corruption. These entities, including the country’s national airline Pakistan International Airlines, which was sold to a private group this week, have relied on subsequent government bailouts over the years to operate.
The ADB approved the $400 million loan for SOE reforms on Dec. 12. It said the program seeks to improve governance and optimize the performance of Pakistan’s commercial SOEs.
Karim highlighted that the Power Transmission Strengthening Project will enable reliable evacuation of 2,300 MW from Pakistan’s upcoming hydropower projects, relieve overloading of existing transmission lines and enhance resilience under contingency conditions, the Press Information Department (PID) said.
“The Secretary emphasized that both initiatives are transformative in nature as the Transmission Project will secure Pakistan’s energy future by strengthening the backbone of the national grid whereas the SOE Program will enhance transparency, efficiency and sustainability of state-owned enterprises nationwide,” the PID said.
The ADB has supported reforms by Pakistan to strengthen its public finance and social protection systems. It has also undertaken programs in the country to help with post-flood reconstruction, improve food security and social and human capital.
To date, ADB says it has committed 764 public sector loans, grants and technical assistance totaling $43.4 billion to Pakistan.
