Pakistan

The aims of the Pakistani government on the topic of energy are clear: generate more energy in the country, promote better energy efficiency and reduce dependency on energy imports. This is because it is above all the tight bottlenecks in energy supply that prevent the Pakistani economy from boosting employment and incomes for the population. To this end, more use has to be made of the significant hydropower potential, primarily in the north. Hydropower is not just the most cost-efficient renewable energy in Pakistan at the minute, it can also produce the greatest output.

German commitment in Pakistan in recent years has already brought sustainable results in the development of hydropower. German expertise is widely recognised in the country. KfW co-funded both of Pakistan's main hydropower projects for example, Tarbela and Ghazi Barotha. Together with European partners, KfW is currently involved in the construction of another two hydropower plants. Thanks to many years of solid cooperation, KfW can also influence the structures of the Pakistani energy supply system. It played an instrumental role in instigating a reorganisation of the state-run energy utility WAPDA for example.

In comparison to other developing countries in southern Asia, Pakistan underperforms in terms of the health of its population. There is a lack of efficient, comprehensive health care throughout the country. The situation is only exacerbated by the high population growth of roughly two percent each year. If this scenario prevails, Pakistan's population will double in the next 30 years, which really threatens to undermine the country's development efforts.

This is why Germany is supporting Pakistan in developing sustainable health-care structures. KfW focuses its development cooperation work in the north-west of the country on the topics of reproductive health and health insurance. At national level it is promoting the development of a blood bank. Since it is the poorer parts of the population and women in particular who stand to benefit from the improvements made to health care, KfW also contributes here to reducing poverty and to ensuring equality between men and women in Pakistan.

The security situation in Pakistan is delicate, especially in the north-west. In the province of Khyber Pakhtunkwa (KPK) in particular, the local population is suffering from the strengthening of radical Islamic forces like the Taliban. Terrorist attacks and open fighting between the Pakistani army and militant groups have previously forced the local people to flee the region. In the early summer of 2014 the fighting once more triggered significant waves of refugees.

In light of the fragile situation, German development cooperation in Pakistan is concentrated primarily on KPK province. In terms of KfW's commitment this means supporting the region to overcome the old conflict and reducing the potential for new conflicts. With a view to regaining the population's lost confidence in the legitimacy of the Pakistani state, KfW's projects are aimed at triggering noticeable improvements in public services in the much-neglected regions. This bolsters the presence and credibility of local administrations and counters the threat of further radicalisation and destabilisation in the region.