PM calls meeting to find a ‘way forward’ over CAREC Tranche-III project

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PM calls meeting to find a ‘way forward’ over CAREC Tranche-III project

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday convened a high-level meeting to review the affairs of the National Highway Authority (NHA), with a particular focus

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By Web Desk

Posted on: January 28, 2026

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday convened a high-level meeting to review the affairs of the National Highway Authority (NHA), with a particular focus on the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (Carec) Tranche-III project, amid concerns that a $360 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) could lapse next year due to prolonged delays.

The meeting comes in the wake of a decision by a Senate standing committee, which has given the NHA a 15-day deadline to initiate the project to avert the risk of losing foreign funding.

The meeting will be attended by Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, federal secretaries of communications, cabinet division, economic affairs division, railways and planning, NHA Chairman retired Capt Asad Ullah Khan, and senior officials from the audit department, the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and the PMO.

Sources in the NHA said the prime minister would be informed that all deficiencies and objections raised by various parliamentary standing committees regarding the Carec Tranche-III project had been addressed.

They said the Standing Committee on Communications has already granted approval and directed the NHA to execute the project within 15 days. The prime minister will also be briefed that the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) has approved the project’s execution mechanism, while the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has issued judgments directing the authority to award the contract without further delay.

Officials are expected to highlight that restarting the tendering process including fresh bidding and approvals would take more than a year and could significantly escalate costs, potentially doubling the project’s overall expenditure.

On January 19, the Senate body, citing concerns raised by the ADB over the possible lapse of the $360 million (Rs108 billion) loan allocated for the Carec road project, directed the NHA to remove all discrepancies and initiate work within 15 days.