NOT a perfect budget, but the budget creates an opportunity — if Pakistan can convert allocation into execution. The budget has money. Policy needed. The budget has money. Political will needed. The budget has money. Strategy needed.

Islamabad has allocated Rs1 trillion for development; the provinces together have Rs2.5 trillion. Spread across Pakistan’s 169 districts, Rs3.5 trillion comes to about Rs21 billion per district, every year. That’s Rs21,000,000,000 for the year for the development of every Pakistani district.

What can be built with Rs3.5 trillion? Around 9,700 primary and elementary schools at the cost of Rs100 million per school. Around 5,700 basic health units at the cost of Rs150 million per unit. Around 40,500 km of roads at the cost of Rs25 million per km. Around........

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