Japan extends financial assistance for PISIP

Lahore: The government of Japan has extended financial assistance of Rs 110 million for capacity building and training under the Punjab Irrigation System Improvement Project (PISIP).

This project intends to enhance the operational functions of Area Water Boards (AWBs) and Farmers' Organisations (Fos) as well as rehabilitation and up gradation of distributaries/minors through a yen loan project named PISIP.

The Japan government extended this financial assistance through the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) to support the efforts in the irrigation sector reforms by the Punjab government.

A signing ceremony held on Friday in this connection here. Secretary Planing and Development Rab Nawaz and Chief Representative JICA Pakistan office Tomoharu Otaka signed the agreement. The target area of project covers Bahawalnagar, Lower Chenab (West) and Dera Jat Canal Circles.

It may be noted that the total cost of PISIP is Rs 6260 million covering civil work (Rs 4148 millions), institutional reforms (Rs 287 million), project co-ordination office (Rs 112 millions), ground water management (Rs 30 millions) design and supervision consultants (Rs 380 millions) and capacity building and training (Rs 110 millions). The civil work consist lining of 1162 km of distributories/minors in brackish ground water area along with rehabilitation and up gradation of 887km of channels.

The overall goal of the project is to establish a model of appropriate irrigation system and to disseminate in the three canal commands. Secretary P&D Board Punjab said the present programme would improve the capacity building methodologies for the relevant government staff such as irrigation and power department (IPD), Punjab irrigation and drainage authority (PIDA), and Punjab agriculture department (PAD) personnel as well as the officials of farmers organisations. Duration of the project is four years starting from 2009, he added.