PESHAWAR: The US Mission to Pakistan has announced two new health projects for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
US Agency for International Development Deputy Mission Director Kevin Brownawell and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khan Khattak joined the launch of the new projects at a ceremony at the Chief Minister’s House in Peshawar.
These initiatives, worth well over Rs 3 billion, include the reconstruction of the burns, trauma and reconstructive surgery centres in Peshawar as well as a new project to improve maternal and child health across seven districts of KP and six FATA agencies.
“USAID has a long history of development assistance to Pakistan and the FATA/KP region programme is a cornerstone of USAID’s development portfolio in the country,” said Brownawell. “We are proud of our strong relationship and the results it has achieved over the years. Our development assistance is helping the KP government promote long-term, sustainable development in the province.”
“Our government gives great importance to collaboration with the United States to promote health initiatives in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said. “Working together, we can improve quality of and access to health services, which is one of today’s critical requirements.”
“We look forward to carrying out both these projects with our Pakistani government partners and the community to save lives and improve the health of Pakistani families,” said US Consul General Raymond McGrath.
The 120-bed burns centre will include a reconstructive surgery unit and provide state-of-the-art services to the patients who currently require emergency travel to the closest facility in Kahrian, Punjab, some 250 kilometres away. The project was suspended for almost seven years before USAID vowed to support it.
USAID’s KP-FATA Health Initiative will train lady health workers and community midwives, provide support to existing public health institutions to improve services and also support health outreach to far-flung areas through mobile health units.
