Strategy Document United Nations Development Programme Pakistan

Transcription

1 Project Title UNDAF Outcome(s): Expected CP Outcome(s): (Those linked to the project and extracted from the CPAP) Expected Output(s): (Those that will result from the project and extracted from the CCPAP) Implementing Partner: Responsible Parties: Strategy Document United Nations Development Programme Pakistan Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization 4.1 The capacity of institutions to be more democratic and accountable is strengthened, including, inter alia, the engagement of civil society organisations, media and academia ; 4.4 Strengthened decentralized Governance ; 4. Strengthen governance and social cohesion 1. Strengthened Inter-governmental relations for effective management of the federation 2. Enhanced capacity of provincial government in policy planning, resource generation and administrative management in devolved sectors 3. Promoting representative and participative Local government structures to enhance public service deliver 4. Enhancing social accountability and public awareness on federalism and decentralization UNDP Ministry of Inter-provincial Coordination, Council of Common Interest Secretariat, Inter-provincial Coordination Departments, Provincial Chief Minister s Office, Provincial Education, Health & Local Govt. Departments, Universities, Higher Education Commission, Civil Society Organizations, Forum of Federations Brief Description The 18th Amendment to the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has ushered in a new era of participatory federalism and inter-governmental relations and represents a major change in the balance of political, legislative and administrative power and distribution of fiscal authority and resources between the federal and provincial governments in the favour of the latter. Hence, it requires wide-ranging changes in the structures and processes in realms of governance, development planning and implementation, institutional development and capacity building. UNDP, being the lead agency on issues pertaining to democratic governance and constitutional reform, has held national and provincial consultations with key stakeholders to identify gaps and entry points for the project. The project will aim to build capacities of key institutions supporting the federation, update legal, administrative and fiscal frameworks at the provincial levels, strengthen governance systems at the local level, and build capacities of duty bearers. The project will also target citizen participation in development planning and decision making. The overall outcome of the project will contribute to strengthening of the democratic processes and institutions at the federal, provincial and local levels that are responsive and accountable to citizens, and effective in equitable service delivery. The project will be implemented through a Direct Implementation Arrangement under the guidance of the Project Review Board and will have four provincial project management units along with a federal management unit. Programme Period: Planning Phase: 2013 Phase I: Phase II: Key Result Area (Strategic Plan) Strengthen governance and social cohesion Atlas Award ID: Start date: February 2013 End Date December 2016 Management Arrangements Direct Implementation 2013 AWP Budget: $1,122,090 Total resources required: $ 15,685,751 Resources required for Planning: $ 500,000 Resources required for Phase I: $ 6,909,000 Resources required for Phase II: $ 8,276,751 Total allocated resources : $500,000 1

2 Situation Analysis The 18 th Constitutional Amendment passed in April 2010 is believed to have brought about a set of comprehensive structural changes to guide and redefine the nature of governance in Pakistan. It has not only revived but also re-oriented radically the democratic and federalist fundamentals of the State of Pakistan. It is believed that the chronic disconnects between Federation and its constituents have been bridged to a greater extent; and the broken contract between state and citizenry is believed to be restored by the 18 th Constitutional Amendment. In this sense of restoring balance between the Federation and Provinces, the 18th Amendment has emerged as a landmark piece of legislation that could lead to a paradigm shift in Pakistan s mode of governance and constitutional architecture. 1 The 1973 Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan consists of 12 Parts, 27 Chapters, 280 Articles and five Schedules. 2 The historic 18 th Constitutional Amendment was passed unanimously by the National Assembly on April 8 th, 2010 and by the Senate of Pakistan on April 15 th, Subsequently, the Amendment was signed into law by the President of Pakistan on April 19 th, The 18 th Amendment has reviewed 102 Articles. Out of which 69 Articles were amended, 20 were substituted, 7 articles were inserted, 3 were omitted, one was repealed. Additionally, 11 recommendations were also enunciated, which falls within the executive authority of the Government. It has been analyzed by some experts that the general tenor of the 18 th amendment was to ameliorate the power-retentive effects of the previous amendments and to diminish, to every extent possible, the feeling of distrust that the provinces had been harboring for each other in absence of any form of power-sharing and autonomy from the centre. 3 Some analysts have termed this spirit of reconciliation as the new wave of political consensuses 4 in Pakistan. The first significant step is one that seeks to correct the distributive inequalities between Pakistan s provinces: the enactment of the 7th National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, an important, corrective consequence of which has been the 18 th Amendment. 5 1 Saeed Shafqat (2011). Civil Service Reforms and 18 th Amendment, Forum of Federation and Civic Education Centre Pakistan. [12 September 2011]. URL: < 2 There have been seven Schedules before the 18 th Amendment, two were omitted therein. 3 Saeed Shafqat (2011). Civil Service Reforms and 18 th Amendment, Forum of Federation and Civic Education Centre Pakistan. [12 September 2011]. URL: < 4 Raza Ahmad (2010). The Endemic Crisis of Federalism in Pakistan, The Lahore Journal of Economics. [12 September 2011]. URL: < 0TTC% pdf>. 5 Ibid. 2

3 It has been argued that the 18 th Constitutional Amendment will reorient the architecture of Centre-Province relationship with special reference to identity, autonomy and resource distribution in the country. This could further influence and trigger the process of decentralization in public policy agendas. The 18th Amendment will have a profound impact on the way the country is governed and its economy is managed. 6 There are a number of new provisions, if put in practice, will strengthen policy, planning and finances of the provinces. Provinces will have the right to raise domestic or foreign loans with the approval of the National Economic Council, a body chaired by the Prime Minister with its Secretariat in the Ministry of Finance. Provinces will collect the entire amount generated by excise duty on oil and natural gas. Future National Finance Commissions cannot issue awards that reduce the combined share of the provinces in the central divisible pool. In other awards, the amount given to the provinces by the 7 th Award has been frozen in time. The only discretion they have is to change the proportions allocated to the provinces. 7 Figure: Understanding the 18 th Constitutional Amendment 8 6 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 8 Amjad Bhatti. (2012). Democratic Devolution: Operational Manual on Transition Management of the 18 th Constitutional Amendment, Forum of Federation and Centre for Civic Education Pakistan 3

4 Challenges and Opportunities In order to implement the 18 th Amendment, an Implementation Commission was established and the devolution of ministries was carried out in three phases between December 2010 to June 2011, resulting in the devolution of the functions and powers of seventeen Ministries at the Federal Government level. Since the start of the Fiscal Year ( ), provincial governments have been attempting to devise plans and strategies that enable smooth and effective implementation of the provisions of the Amendment. Some aspects of the devolution process remain unsettled, and will naturally take some time to stabilize as has been the case in many countries introducing sweeping constitutional reforms. This is particularly true in relation to (i) the need for instituting appropriate mechanisms for coordination between Federal and Provincial Governments; (ii) the resolution of sectoral governance challenges at the provincial level, (iii) establishment of local governments, and (iv) ensuring compliance of the constitutional provisions by both federal and provincial governments. The intentions for coordination are hampered by the lack of capacity of the CCI secretariat to respond efficiently to requests by provincial governments; lack of opportunities for provincial governments to interact with each other; and a lack of understanding among provincial governments on how to access the CCI secretariat. The devolution of ministries post-18 th Amendment included some key social sectors that were given to the provinces including health, education, women & development, youth, and social welfare. Since Pakistan s independence, provincial social sector departments have merely assisted in implementation of plans and policies drafted by the federal government. The change in functions and responsibilities post-devolution has directly impacted public service delivery. Even though provinces now have the opportunity to tailor-make their social sector priorities but they do not have the capacity to deliver them on ground. The immediate need is for provincial social sector departments to map out their new functions and responsibilities. The governance structure of these social sectors needs to be streamlined for improved service delivery and management of these devolved services. The 7th National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, adopted in March 2010, increased the transfers from the federal government to the provinces. However, the terms of the Award were set prior to adoption of the 18th Amendment and therefore did not explicitly take account of the additional responsibilities provincial governments have acquired. While the 18th amendment mandated that natural resources such as oil, gas and other minerals will have joint ownership of both the federal government and the provincial government, there has been strong criticism from the provinces of the federal government for not respecting this provision. The joint ownership of natural resources would provide provincial governments with another much-needed avenue for revenue generation. Another problem associated with resource sharing is the fact that data is not available on the details of quantum of resources, pricing structures, profit margins and funds collected to date by the federal government especially after the passing of the 18th amendment. 4

5 Another key element of revenue generation by the provinces pertains devolved right to collect taxes by the provinces. While the simple interpretation of the 18th amendment is that taxes on goods will be collected by the federal government and the taxes on services by the provincial governments, there is still lack of clarity in differentiation between various goods and services. In order to increase its fiscal efforts, especially to collect General Sales Tax (GST) on services, both Sindh and Punjab have established their own Revenue Boards 9. Sindh Revenue Board (SRB) has achieved its target of Rs. 25 billion in while for the year , SRB is estimated to collect Rs. 32 billion an increase of 28% over last year estimates. With the devolution of critical subjects to the provincial level, the provincial governments are empowered to develop new laws and to amend existing laws. In particular, the amendment of the Civil Procedure Code can be a critical piece of legislation that the provinces can amen since the current Civil Procedure Code dates back to British times. Since the passage of the Amendment, Punjab Government identified 72 laws that required changes out of which 45 laws have been amended while 27 new laws have been approved by Cabinet 10. In all provinces, some laws are pending due to incomplete devolution of Workers Welfare Fund (WWF), Employees Old-age Benefits Institution (EOBI), and Evacuee Property Trust. Article 140A of the constitution calls upon provinces including FATA to establish a local government system and devolve political, administrative and financial responsibility and authority to the elected representatives of the local governments. The Election Commission of Pakistan shall hold the local government elections; however, the timeline for conducting them is not specified in the Amendment. Most of the decentralization reforms introduced under Devolution Reforms of 2000 and Local Government Ordinance 2001 have been revoked in the provinces. The absence of elected local governments in the provinces including FATA poses the most significant risk to the Amendment in that not only does it violate the provisions of Article 140A which make it mandatory upon provinces to establish strong, independent and politically empowered local governments but also poses severe limitations on improving services and synchronizing budgets and planning processes with local needs. Since service delivery and citizen-focused implementation takes place at the local level, this is an important provision and the role of the Local Governments assumes great significance in the overall context, intent and content of the Amendment. The Social Audit done by UNDP showed that the general public was more receptive and supportive to the idea of an elected local government that gave them not only a sense of belonging but also improved service delivery. In the absence of a local government structure in provinces of late, citizens perception and satisfaction with public sector services including education, health, roads, water services, sewerage and sanitation, garbage disposal, public transport, and other utilities has reduced drastically 11. Summarily, the envisioned impacts of the 18 th Constitutional Amendment include: 9 Seidle, Leslie & Khan, Zafarullah, p , Federalism and Eighteenth Amendment: Challenges and Opportunities for Transition Management in Pakistan 10 White Paper Budget , Department of Finance, Government of Punjab Social Audit of Local Governance and Delivery of Public Service UNDP

6 (a) Stabilizing Federation through Provincial Autonomy As discussed earlier the Federation-Provinces relationships were deteriorating since decades. Against this backdrop, the first and the foremost intended and desired outcome of the 18 th Amendment is to create an enabling environment for the participatory federalism to flourish in Pakistan. The Amendment, in this context, has taken major historic decisions where Federation-Center dynamics would substantially change for the good and betterment of the people. The delegation of much- demanded autonomy to the provinces in legislative, executive, fiscal and administrative spheres is meant to bring a climate of healthy competition and cooperation between provinces leading to strengthen the essence of the Federation of Pakistan. (b) Equitable Development through Devolution Centralized and top-down development planning is considered to be the major root- cause of the failures of development outcomes in Pakistan. This centralist paradigm has not delivered social services to the people of Pakistan proportionate to the financial resources allocated and spent. Pakistan thus has become the history of wasted resources, missed targets, failed opportunities and increased disparities in social development sector. The 18 th Amendment, however, has instituted a durable and constitutionally guaranteed process of devolution by devolving subjects, functions, policies, planning and implementation to the provincial domains. With the policies, planning and programming related to service delivery in social sector devolved to the Provinces, Federal planning bodies can no more design and plan a development project without taking into account the provincial representation and perspective (CCI, NEC, PC). The same is desired from the provinces in relation to districts, only then top-down paradigm of development could be replaced with the bottom-up perspective. Accountability and representation are two key features of devolution which need to be incorporated at every tier and sub-tier of development planning, management and execution. This would usher in a new era of development through devolution in Pakistan. Deepening Democracy through Representative and Accountable Governance Unabated dictatorial disruptions have not allowed democracy to take roots in the country. The 18 th Amendment has provided an elaborate mechanism which would lead broadening and deepening democracy in Pakistan. By correcting the distortions in the assignment of executive authority at the federal and provincial level, the 18 th Amendment has also provided for the grassroots election in local government jurisdictions. As popularly believed that local governments are the nurseries of democracy, the timely introduction of elected local governments (by the respective provincial governments) will deepen the democratic process at the lowest tiers of the governance. 6

7 UNDP Flagship Initiative: The Process, Partners and Programme The Process UNDP Pakistan undertook provincial and national consultations to understand the needs of both federal and provincial governments in implementing the 18th Amendment. The consultations were held with eight major political parties, 16 key line departments of provincial governments spread across all four provinces, 117 NGOs, key donors and international development organizations, and academic research institutions. The findings of the needs assessment were published in a report titled Federalism and Eighteenth Amendment. The report identifies that the devolution process is still in the transitional phase and a number of key issues need to be addressed to ensure compliance with the 18th Amendment. The Council of Common Interests has emerged as a policy forum that can formulate and regulate matters pertaining to Federal Legislative List Part-II. Since the passage of the Amendment, CCI has held nine meetings with provincial governments making more effective use of CCI to resolve issues. The devolution process has resulted in issues with reporting on international commitments, policy development in social sectors, amendments in laws, and inter-governmental coordination. The report also underlines the need to establish local governance structures, which are mandatory under the Amendment, in all provinces to improve service delivery and citizen participation. The role of the civil society is fundamental to ensuring proper implementation of the Amendment including operationalization of Right to Education, Right to Information and Right to Fair Trial. The needs assessment exercise enabled UNDP to design a technical-assistance programme to support both the federal and provincial governments in effectively implementing the different aspects of the 18 th Amendment. It is also pertinent to note that all four provincial governments have formally requested for support from UNDP to support the devolution process and have identified key interventions that they wanted UNDP to undertake. The Ministry of Inter- Provincial Coordination has similarly supported the intervention by getting project approval in the 1 st meeting of the Standing Committee of the Council of Common Interests. The nature and components of the programme have been developed after extensive consultations with each stakeholder involved and have ensured that there is no duplication of activities with other development partners. There is ownership of the programme from both federal and provincial governments including the political parties and bureaucracy. Partners Based on the needs assessment study, UNDP has launched a technical-assistance project to Strengthen Participatory Federalism and Decentralization (SPFD) in Pakistan. SPFD is UNDP s 7

8 flagship project to inform, facilitate, support and optimize the process of transitionmanagement at federal, provincial and grassroots levels. UNDP has identified multiple stakeholders to cater to the different capacity needs of both federal and provincial governments. However, the main government counterpart is the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination at both the Federal and provincial levels. Ministry of Inter- Provincial Coordination has historically played a minimal role in coordinating between provinces and has seen the highest staff turnover due to the perceived lack of importance of the functions of the department. Post-18 th Amendment the role and responsibilities of the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination has changed drastically since they are the key line department managing inter-provincial coordination on issues relevant to Federal Legislative List II. Currently, the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination at the Federal level is serving as the Secretariat of the Council of Common Interests and handles all the matters relevant to jointmanagement subjects including setting of the CCI agenda and implementation of CCI decisions. While the provincial counterparts are responsible for overseeing the implementation of CCI decisions in their respective provinces and also are responsible for raising provincial matters at the CCI Forum. UNDP will also have activity specific partners including different government departments and civil society organizations; however, all programme work will be coordinated through the Inter-Provincial Coordination Department/Division. Details of provincial government partners are elaborated in the provincial strategies section. Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Project (SPFD) plans to establish strategic partnerships with Universities, Research organizations, and civil society organizations to implement project activities. These partnerships would facilitate project implementation and diversify project s footprint across the country. The overarching goal of establishing partnerships is to implement key project activities in collaboration with these partners so that there is greater ownership and long-term institutionalization of project initiatives. The project team has also conducted an exhaustive literature review to identify universities, research institutions and civil society organizations with published research on federalism, 18th amendment and decentralization. The project plans to engage with eight public sector universities that have already conducted research in different aspects of federalism and have an expertise in the concerned subject area. Even though research facilities are weak in public sector universities, the project sees it as an opportunity to inculcate a research culture and link them up with key line government departments in provinces. Civil Society Organizations including Forum of Federations and Center for Civic Education have been selected not only the basis of their previous three-year program on 18th Amendment but also through an exhaustive comparative analysis of the work done in this sector by CSOs. The media partners, PTV and Radio Pakistan, are the only electronic media forums who are willing to provide air time for free and have the largest terrestrial network in the country. The project has selected each partner on the basis of their previous work in the subject area, research capacity, linkages with the 8

9 community and government counterparts, willingness to work with UNDP, and geographical representation. Advocacy Figure: Implementation Strategy SPFD Project will be implemented based on four key principles; i) Mapping, ii) Visioning, iii) Piloting, iv) Replicating. Under mapping, the project will map out the contours of the 18th Amendment and analyze the impact it has had on the operations of different tiers of governance. The mapping exercise would include understanding the entries of the Federal Legislative List II, responsibilities of devolved sectors in provinces, and conducting baseline research for project activities. The purpose of the visioning exercise is to focus on using the mapping research to identify and plan strategic activities that would most effectively aid the transition management process in Pakistan. The interventions decided in the visioning phase would not only be guided by research but will also be sensitive to the needs of project partners and government counterparts. Under the piloting principle, the project will implement model activities under each output to have maximum impact and achieve desired results. The interventions implemented in this phase will aim to enhance inter-governmental relations, social sector governance, local governance and social accountability. A monitoring and evaluation framework will be developed for each activity to ensure effective implementation of activities. The replicating 9

10 phase will be focused on learning from the piloting phase and expanding project activities to address challenges of different aspects of the 18th Amendment. Advocacy and policy communication will cut across all steps of strategy targeting stakeholder engagement and ownership of the project. The underlying objective of the implementation strategy is to have research-based intervention strategies that aid the implementation of the 18th Amendment. Since the enactment of the 18 th Amendment, there has been a growing research interest amongst academia, civil society, and international development organizations to study its implications and analyze its implementation process. In this regard, Lahore University of Management Sciences hosted an international conference on Federalism in Pakistan after 18 th Amendment 12. Research think tanks and civil society organizations including Center for Civic Education 13, Social Policy and Development Center 14, Sustainable Development Policy Institute, and Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT) 15 have published papers on different aspects of 18 th Amendment. International Development Organizations including UNDP 16, World Bank, UNODC, and Forum of Federations have commissioned multiple studies to look at the challenges and opportunities in connection with the implementation of the 18 th Amendment. UNDP will have a collaborative approach in this programme to bring a wide range of stakeholders interested in working on transition management challenges to learn from each other s experiences and share best practices. Programme The overall proposed outcome of the project is strengthened democratic processes and institutions at the three tiers of governance that are responsive and accountable to citizens, and effective in equitable service delivery. Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Project will be implemented in two phases; Phase I ( ) and Phase II ( ). The focus of Phase I would be on providing immediate assistance on matters pertaining to transition management and provincial autonomy to the newly-elected democratic federal and provincial governments. While Phase II would be geared towards providing support for institutional development, long-term sustainability of the federation, improved service delivery and greater citizen engagement in the democratic process. In view of the pivotal importance of the 18th amendment in the current political situation of Pakistan and its path stitutionalamendmentonfederalprovincesrelations-briefingpaper.pdf Final%20Report.pdf 10

11 towards democratization, the overall outcome will be achieved through four key pillars of the programme: I. Equitable inter-governmental relations under federal framework II. Decentralized governance focusing on social sector III. Improved public service delivery through elective Local Government Systems IV. Enhanced social accountability and public awareness for responsive governance Figure: SPFD Programme Outputs Output I: Equitable inter-governmental relations under federal framework Council of Common Interests is mandated to formulate and regulate policies respecting the 18 matters enumerated in Part II of the Federal Legislative List (FLL) and exercise supervision and control over related institutions. This list includes some of the subjects that were previously on the Concurrent List, which was abolished by the 18th Amendment, as well as several others. CCI s mandate thus covers a range of highly important domains, including: national planning and national economic coordination; supervision and management of public debt; legal, medical and other professions; standards in institutions for higher education and research; electricity; and interprovincial matters and coordination. The federal government can only legislate on subjects in Part II of the FLL after consultation with the provinces through the CCI. Currently, the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination serves as the Secretariat of the CCI and the provincial Inter-Provincial Coordination departments serve as the focal points in the provinces. Under this output, UNDP will undertake capacity building of the Inter-Provincial Coordination departments through trainings, provision of technical expertise, research, and knowledgesharing with federations around the world. Apart from capacity building, UNDP plans to 11

12 enhance greater collaboration between the IPC departments and encourage the departments to pilot e-governance and RTI initiatives such as citizens portal on CCI. The key activities under this output are: Training Inter-Provincial Coordination department/division staff in intergovernmental relations, negotiation skills and devolution Organizing an International Conference on Federalism and Decentralization to learn from similar academic and practical experiences of other countries Developing a database on devolution (to be housed at IPC) for establishing institutional memory and documenting the devolution process with on-going updates Providing technical expertise to Inter-Provincial Coordination departments on economic (including national debt) and legal affairs Supporting Inter-Provincial Coordination departments in driving provincial agenda for resolution of pending matters of the 18 th Amendment Enhancing greater collaboration and coordination between IPC departments for improved inter-governmental relations Modelling operationalization of Right to Information of citizens by disseminating information regarding CCI decisions and their implementation through the IPC department Output II: Decentralized governance focusing on social sector The concurrent list (with 47 subjects) stands abolished while the Provinces have been given the additional responsibilities to handle select business of 17 federal ministries. Importantly, the Provinces now have an exclusive role in policy-making in crucial sectors such as health, education, agriculture and environment to name a few. With the renewed role of policy formulation and target setting, provincial Governments can play a vital role in mitigating social deprivation accumulated over the years of centralized rule in Pakistan. Provincial Governments are best suited now to develop their decentralized service delivery mechanisms to create citizens ownership and control on public goods, services and processes involved therein. Since 2000, the efforts of the global development community especially UNDP have largely focused on the pursuit of the Millennium Development Goals 2015 (MDGs). MDGs offer the promise of a better life a life with access to adequate food and income, access to basic education and health services, and access to clean water and sanitation. However, the recently launched provincial MDG reports in Pakistan reflect that it is going to be difficult for Pakistan to meet most of the MDG targets by Since the social sectors have been devolved to the provinces, it has become critical to work with the provincial governments in developing specific strategies and goals geared towards achievement of MDGs. Under this output, UNDP plans to work directly with provincial governments in supporting them in drafting five-year development roadmaps, reviewing rules of business of government 12

13 departments, and establish inter-provincial forums on social sectors. UNDP will also support the Chief Minister s Office in installing SIGOB for effective management and monitoring of government decisions. Linkages between academic institutions and relevant key line departments will also be established for policy-driven research and analysis. The training of civil servants remains a cornerstone of this output to ensure that there is greater understanding of the process of decentralization and devolution amongst the duty bearers. Some of the key activities under this output are as follows: Assist provincial governments in developing five-year development roadmaps through a consultative process with a focus on achievement of MDGs Support provincial governments in reviewing Rules of Business to streamline roles and responsibilities of government departments and functionaries Establish Inter-Provincial Forums on Health and Education for collaboration and information sharing amongst provinces Implement SIGOB (Strengthening of Management Abilities for Governance) in Chief Minister Offices for better monitoring and management of cabinet decisions Providing technical expertise to provincial governments for setting up/supporting Provincial Revenue Authorities Introducing training course on federalism and devolution management at the Civil Services Training Academy Linking academic and research institutions with relevant provincial government departments for conducting research to inform policy making Assist provincial governments in setting up liaison offices in Islamabad for enhanced coordination with the federal government Output III: Improved public service delivery through elective Local Government Systems This output will focus on supporting the provincial governments to further devolve power to the local level as intended by the 18th amendment. This is critical for the implementation of not only the letter, but the spirit of the Amendment by enabling ordinary citizens to have a voice in decision making, planning and implementation of activities that will affect their lives. Districts are the administrative constituents of any province, where actually most of the action and service delivery will happen. It is feared if the authority, autonomy, responsibility and fiscal space are not extended to or shared further with the lowest tiers of governance, it would become impossible for Provinces to do justice with the portfolios assigned to them thus mutilating the dividends of vertical devolution. The present local government laws across provinces including AJK, FATA & GB have large variations in terms of the philosophy and understanding of the Article 140-A of the constitution. Every Provincial Government has adopted a different strategy and the analysis underlying the new laws and lessons learned from the past are missing. In most cases, the provinces have done cosmetic changes to the previous local government legislation and approved a version of it with a change in nomenclature. 18 th Amendment provided provincial governments with a 13

14 unique opportunity to draft a new legislation on local governments that reflects the current nature of provincial autonomy and devolves substantial power to local governments. Under this output, UNDP will be working with the Local Government departments and provincial Parliamentary Standing Committees on Local Govt. in drafting of legislation and conducting stakeholder consultations on them. Local government competitive funds will spur on innovation and competition amongst districts to bring about much-needed improvement in public service delivery. Districts will have to come up with business plans that outline targeted interventions to bring about reforms in service delivery and contribute to community development. All these activities will be coupled with policy advocacy for holding local government elections once the relevant laws have been developed. The key activities under this output are: Establishing technical working groups to support Local Govt. departments and provincial Parliamentary Standing Committees on Local Govt. for drafting of local government legislation Conducting training of Local Govt. department officials in decentralization and devolution Establishing an Inter-Provincial Local Government Network for information sharing and inter-provincial coordination on local government Conducting district-wide consultations on draft local government legislation for citizen feedback and engagement Piloting and show casing models of effective service delivery through Local Government Competitive Fund Policy advocacy for conducting local government elections and development of provincial finance commission awards for fair distribution of resources to districts Output IV: Enhanced social accountability and public awareness for responsive governance The purpose of public policy and reforms is to improve the quality of life for citizens. Yet, too often the citizen and the benefits which are to accrue to them as a result of the reforms tend to get pushed into the peripheries of both discourse and action. The 18th Amendment made Right to Education, Right to Fair Trial and Right to Information as fundamental rights provided to the citizens. However, efforts need to be done by the provinces to operationalize these rights. The 18th Amendment provides ample opportunity for civil society engagement to optimize the democratic devolution, but, currently there is a visible disconnect between policy formulation and participation of citizenry in the process of implementing the 18th Amendment. In this context, the role of civil society assumes great significance from three perspectives; i) It can help mobilize citizens by raising awareness of what the Amendment brings for them in the shape of rights and benefits and thus enable them to play a crucial role in advocacy on the right implementation of the Amendment; ii) Civil society can serve as a watchdog on public policy commitments and reform agendas to ensure accountability and transparency in governance; 14

15 and iii) Civil society has a significant role with special reference to social sector governance in the Provinces. It is therefore essential to develop leadership among the civil society to audit the performance of stakeholders by engaging with the process of implementation of the 18th Amendment at Federal and Provincial levels. Under this output, UNDP would focus on enhancing citizen s participation in governance and decision making processes so that government priorities are in line with public needs. The very essence of the Amendment is to give power to the people; hence, citizen participation through discussion forums, citizen scorecards, and constitutional literacy is necessary. The project will set up discussion forums for the public to voice their opinion on issues of public interest and service delivery. These forums will have expert panels and government officials to make them more engaging and meaningful. The findings of these forums will be published in the form of a white paper to be duly shared with the concerned departments. The project plans to engage with universities to encourage greater research interest in issues of federalism and decentralization. UNDP would also engage with media personnel in training them on constitutional and governance reporting coupled with establishment of a Media Group on Governance. Some of the key activities under this output are: Conducting All-Party Political Dialogues on Federalism and Decentralization for garnering political commitment Setting up UNDP Fellowship on Federalism through Higher Education Commission for encouraging academic research on different aspects of federalism in Pakistan Establishing Media Group on Governance for monitoring and reporting of constitutional and governance issues Strengthen democratic foundations by involving youth across Universities on areas of constitutional literacy, federalism and decentralization Policy Advocacy for implementation and drafting of citizens Right to Information laws by both federal and provincial governments Conducting citizen engagement dialogues and discussion forums for raising awareness and generating public discussion on issues of devolution and service delivery Enhancing social accountability and oversight through two cycles of Social Audit to determine citizen s perception of public service delivery 15

16 Project Implementation Cycle Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Project has been split it into three key phases for ensuring effective project implementation: i) Project Planning Phase, ii) Project Implementation Phase I, iii) Project Implementation Phase II. Project Planning Phase (Jan July 2013) Indicative Budget: USD 500,000/- Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Project is a Directly Implemented Project by UNDP. Since the project has both a political and a socio-economic dimension to it, the project strategy needs to be aligned with the changing situation on ground. The focus of the Planning Phase was to recruit key staff, streamline key activities for Phase I, develop partnerships, set up the Project Office, and initiate resource mobilization. SPFD has established key relationships with various government stakeholders including the Inter-Provincial Coordination departments, Secretariat of CCI, Local Government departments, Chief Minister Offices, CSOs, research think tanks and universities. In the meanwhile, UNDP has been able to recruit key staff members and set up the Project Office in Islamabad. Provincial Offices are planned to be set up in Phase I of the Project. Project Implementation Phase I Strategy (Aug 2013 Dec 2014) Indicative Budget: USD 6,909,000 Project Implementation Phase I will focus on working with both the federal and provincial governments on key prioritized areas to achieve maximum results and build a solid foundation for the way forward in Phase II. In Phase I, the key project outputs identified in the Strategy Document have been further streamlined to define specific activities that would help achieve them. At the federal level, the project will be engaging with the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) and Higher Education Commission. At the provincial level, SPFD will be working directly with two provincial governments initially; Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. The purpose of selecting these two provincial governments is primarily based on the opportunities available in working on federalism and decentralization issues in each one of them. In both provinces, there is great political will for such an initiative and government has been forthcoming in highlighting their needs and identifying areas of support. However, SPFD Project will engage with the remaining two provinces in the Project Implementation Phase II. Since the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination currently serves as the CCI Secretariat, SPFD Project will work on building their capacity both in the short and long-term. In the short-term, the Project has mutually agreed with the Ministry to conduct training of their staff on various skills including Inter-Governmental relations management, Information Technology, and Coordination. The focus of these trainings would be to improve their day-to-day management of the affairs of the Secretariat and enhance coordination amongst the Federal and provincial governments. The Ministry of IPC has requested support for provision of an economist and a 16

17 constitutional lawyer to their team. Currently, the CCI division of the Ministry is managed by three officials (Secretary, Senior Joint Secretary and Section Officer). The existing staff lacks the necessary technical skills required to comprehensively evaluate provincial summaries and give constructive feedback on it. An Economist is needed to provide insights into debt management, debt coordination, national planning and economic coordination issues that are all listed on Federal Legislative List II. While a constitutional lawyer would support the Ministry in identifying the necessary amendments needed in laws at both the federal and provincial levels including interpretation of various entries of the Federal Legislative List II. In the short-term local experts would be provided to fulfil these obligations; however, SPFD has indicated to the Ministry that these positions need to be created within the government structure so that they can become a permanent part of the Secretariat. It has also been agreed with the Ministry of IPC to develop a Database on Devolution that would be a repository of all devolution-related notifications, legal amendments, CCI decisions & their implementation statuses, and other relevant documents. The digital repository would create an institutional memory for the government since transfers and postings of the staff results in a significant loss of valuable resources. Similarly, a web-portal would be developed of the database to be shared with the provincial IPC departments. The database will also have a citizen s outreach component so that certain information such as CCI reports could be made public for easy access by the citizens. Database on Devolution Ministry of IPC Staff Training Federal PMU Provision of technical expertise - Economics / Legal Affairs HEC UNDP Fellowship on Federalism Figure: Federal Engagement SPFD Project will be working with the Higher Education Commission to encourage academic research in different aspects of federalism. UNDP is offering a Fellowship on Federalism to MPhil students to pursue research thesis on different thematic areas relevant to Federalism in Pakistan. The fellowships will be awarded to students from all provinces and regions of Pakistan 17

18 to ensure that the research culture is garnered in universities across Pakistan and greater academic interest is generated in issues of federalism and decentralization. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Devolution Support Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, formerly N.W.F.P, had its long-standing demand of changing its name met as part of the 18th Amendment. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is home to 22.5 million people with a strong cultural identity but varied ethnicities and religious affiliations. The province has been at the centre of War on Terror and has faced the highest number of terrorist attacks in recent years. Since the independence of Pakistan, both Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan have been demanding provincial autonomy and control over their own resources from the federal government. The passage of the 18th Amendment coupled with the 7th National Finance Commission Award helped to address some of those key demands. SPFD Project will be initially engaging with the Inter-Provincial Coordination Department and Local Government Department in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Council of Common Interest s is mandated to manage Federal Legislative List (FLL) II that covers a range of highly important domains, including: national planning and national economic coordination; supervision and management of public debt; legal, medical and other professions; standards in institutions for higher education and research; electricity; and interprovincial matters and coordination. The federal government can only legislate on subjects in Part II of the FLL after consultation with the provinces through the CCI. The Inter-Provincial Coordination Department (IPCD) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the relevant line department responsible for agenda setting, bringing provincial issues to the forum, overseeing implementation of CCI decisions, and managing coordination between provinces. IPCD has continued to be one of the weakest departments in the provincial government with no significant weight associated to it until the passage of the 18th Amendment. SPFD will work to build capacity of IPCD to turn it into a responsive institution. The engagement with the Inter- Provincial Coordination Department will revolve around training and capacity building of IPC Staff. It has been mutually agreed that trainings of IPC Staff will be conducted on different aspects of devolution, inter-provincial coordination, Information Technology and management skills. Moreover, technical experts (Economist and Legal Affairs Specialist) will be provided to IPCD for assisting them in developing and analysing provincial summaries along with overseeing effective implementation of CCI Decisions. The Database on Devolution developed at the Federal level will have a provincial module developed for IPCD in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. All these activities combined will provide key assistance to the line Ministry in building their capacity and improving their workings. 18

19 Provision of technical expertise IPC Dept Training of IPC Staff Database on Devolution Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Devolution Support Unit Technical Working Group established to support development of LG law Local Govt. Dept District wide Consultations on Draft LG Law Training of LG Staff at LG Training Academy Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly had passed a Local Government Bill in 2012 which was similar to the Local Govt. Ordinance However, the provincial government was unable to conduct local government elections due to the completion of their tenure. After 11th May Elections, the newly-elected provincial government has promised to conduct local government elections; however, the government wants to develop a new local government law prior to conducting elections with input from and participation of all stakeholders. SPFD has jointly-planned with the Local Govt. department and political leadership in the province to steer this process. A technical working group would be established with leading experts to assist the local govt. department and the provincial Standing Committee on Local Govt. to draft the law. The draft law, once developed, would be opened up for Public Hearings and district-wide consultations would be conducted to incorporate citizen feedback and have wider ownership of the law. Historically, elected local government structures have only been present under military setups in Pakistan and little power has been awarded to these structures. SPFD has a unique opportunity to assist the drafting of a new local government law in both provinces that accounts for service delivery, accountability and fiscal sustainability of local government structures leading to long term stability and social cohesion. 19