The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide $400 million in soft loans for earthquake housing projects and $800 million for an expressway in Karachi and various programmes related to water, waste and sewerage management, ADB Director General, Juan Miranda, said. During a meeting with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, Miranda said that the successful implementation of wide-ranging structural reforms had put Pakistan s economy back on the track of sustainable development, according to an official statement. Banking and financial sectors have made good progress and pension and insurance are part of the second-generation reforms being pushed by the government, he said. Aziz asked the ADB to enhance its role in strengthening infrastructure development projects. He said that the government was focusing on improving the logistics chain to improve the competitiveness of products . The completion of the National Trade Corridor Plan and the building of the North South Corridor will remove roadblocks in industrial development and trade enhancement, the prime minister said, adding that the government will build a series of industrial zones and warehouses alongside highways in order to expedite industrialisation.
