PM calls NHA meeting amid fears that Carec project loan may lapse
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has convened a high-level meeting today (Wednesday) to review the National Highway Authority’s (NHA) affairs, including the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (Carec) Tranche-III project, amid a warning from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) that a $360 million loan could lapse next year due to delays.
The meeting follows a Senate body’s decision to give the NHA a green signal to initiate the project within 15 days in order to avoid the loss of the foreign funding.
According to a Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) document seen by Dawn, the meeting will be attended by Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, the federal secretaries of communications, cabinet division, economic affairs division, railways and planning, National Highway Authority Chairman retired Capt Asad Ullah Khan, and senior officials from the audit department, Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and the PMO.
A source in the NHA said the prime minister will be informed that all deficiencies and flaws highlighted by various standing committees regarding the Carec Tranche-III project had been addressed.
Senate body has given authority 15 days to initiate the scheme
Following this, the Standing Committee on Communications has granted approval and directed the National Highway Authority 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 NHA’s execution process for the project, while the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has issued verdicts directing the authority to award the contract without further delay.
He will be told that restarting the tendering process — including bidding and approvals — would take more than a year and could double the project cost due to escalation.
On January 19, the Senate body, citing concerns raised by the ADB over the possible lapse of the $360 million (Rs108bn) loan earmarked for the Carec road project by next year, directed the National Highway Authority to remove all discrepancies, flaws and shortcomings and to initiate the project within 15 days.
Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2026
