Pakistan, after fifty eight years of existence, was faced with a governance crisis. Certain significant political and economic developments in the international environment were having a profound impact on the country. Pakistan was faced with complex and daunting challenges threatening its stability. These challenges were: regional dynamics after the launch of the 'Global War on Terrorism' by the USA; democratisation, the universal quest for re-inventing government, the apparent triumph of capitalism, and the paradigm shift towards sustainable development. This book presents political, economic, legal and public issues during the reformation era of Pakistan's decentralising government.
The recently introduced devolution is a major and significant change in the way the government system has been set-up in Pakistan. This new system has been praised as a major new development and has also drawn adverse comments from some quarters. A number of scholars and research scientists have explored the issues of devolution and governance in Pakistan in the essays that make up this book. It brings together a rich and diversified multiplicity of views. The authors include faculty members from Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and other prestigious institutions in Pakistan and other countries, as well as government functionaries and scholars dealing with the issues of governance.
Effective governance is one of the key challenges for both developing and developed countries. Governments, today, are increasingly encountering complex and cross-cutting issues such as economic and financial volatility, internal and external conflicts, growing social tensions, adverse demographic trends, climate change vulnerabilities, weak regulatory regimes, huge infrastructure and service delivery gaps, state and elite capturing and sustaining rule of law. Faced with growing criticism of ineffectiveness of state institutions undermining country’s economic, social and political development because of weakening capacity of public officials to pace up with emerging challenges, there is a renewed interest in reforming the governance and reforming the civil service.
Pakistan, after fifty-nine years of existence, is at a historical crossroads. The country faces an acute crisis of governance. Problems with the administrative set-up include poor planning, waste, mismanagement, inefficiency and the absence of a work ethic. Malfunction was the norm not the exception in the bureaucratic structure of the country. Excessive discretionary powers, overlapping of jurisdictions and the absence of clear-cut demarcations of authority and administrative control had weakened government performance. The gap between policy-making and policy-execution was wide partially due to weaknesses in the bureaucracy and the generally low quality of state personnel. Independent observers agree that the overall performance of the GOP was poor or lacklustre at best. The crisis of governance in Pakistan mainly stems from a deficient federal set-up and over centralisation of power in the national government. The World Bank, among others, believes that Pakistan had suffered due to rampant corruption and weak government that had created serious economic imbalances.
This book provides a research-based analysis of public sector reforms in Pakistan. It offers a broad overview of reforms at different levels of government – including federal, provincial and local – and examines decentralization and devolution reforms in various policy sectors. It also reflects on market-oriented reforms and the steps taken to involve the private sector to build a better-governed public sector, and explores new trends in the public sector in the areas of digitalisation and disaster management. Bringing together young researchers, academics, and practitioners, the book sets a new milestone in the movement towards context-specific reform studies in both academia and the professional practice of public administration, particularly in South Asia.
Providing a non-technical understanding of poor economic growth and performance of the public sector in Pakistan relative to that of peer countries, Vaqar Ahmed's Pakistan's Agenda for Economic Reforms serves as an interesting introduction to policymakers, journalists, and civil society organizations interested in carrying out research and advocacy work as part of their social accountability efforts and attempts to improve economic governance in the country. Delving one step ahead from recent literature on Pakistan's economy, the author focuses on why reform of institutions dealing with economic policy regulation and management is imperative, while simultaneously speculating issues underlying the past decade, and identifying key areas of improvement and pending structural reforms that Pakistan's economy could pursue for inclusive growth and social justice. Exploring the fragmented structure of energy governance, public expenditure management, trade, transit, and the labor market, this book serves as an important resource for readers wishing to have an understanding of economic challenges and reform options.
Washington seems to be in a season of worrying--some might say "obsessing"--About the education system in Pakistan. The 9/11 Commission, whose final report has become a fixture on the bestseller lists, has highlighted the links between international terrorism and Pakistan's religious seminaries, or "madaris", and recommended that the United States support Pakistani efforts to improve the quality of the education it offers its young. The The American government, with the U.S. Agency for International Development as the lead agency, plans to spend tens of millions of dollars this year alone on primary education and literacy programs in Pakistan. The international donor community has been active on this front for decades, but has significantly expanded its activities in recent years. But most of all, Pakistanis themselves have raised the alarm and encouraged this newfound interest in their schools. This volume explores an issue that Pakistanis themselves have identified as vital to their national well-being. Essays include: (1) Educating the Pakistani Masses (Shahid Javed Burki); (2) Education, Employment and Economic Development in Pakistan (Ishrat Husain); (3) Challenges in the Education Sector in Pakistan (Salman Shah); (4) Reform in Higher Education in Pakistan (Grace Clark); (5) Against the Tide: Role of The Citizens Foundation in Pakistani Education (Ahsan Saleem); (6) Reasons for Rage: Reflections on the Education System of Pakistan with Special Reference to English (Tariq Rahman); (7) Education Sector Reforms in Pakistan: Demand Generation as an Alternative Recipe (Jonathan Mitchell, Salman Humayun, and Irfan Muzaffar); (8) Report for Congress on Education Reform in Pakistan; (9) Education in Pakistan and the World Bank's Program (Michelle Riboud); (10) The Punjab Education Sector Reform Program 2003-2006; (11) Pakistan's Recent Experience in Reforming Islamic Education (Christopher Candland); and (12) Pakistan: Reforming the Education Sector. An introduction by Robert M. Hathaway is included. Individual papers contain tables, charts, notes and references.
This book suggests that Pakistan has been stuck in a transition characterized by countervailing values and attitudes. The countrys governing elite could have led the society to cross the transition threshold through appropriate sociopolitical reforms but, being itself the product of existing social structures, it possesses both an authoritarian tendency as well as a belief in the legitimacy of a rational-democratic order. It is thus constrained by the paradox of practicing authoritarianism while seeking legitimacy in democratic terms. Furthermore, the task of adjustment between irreconcilable features compels adoption of short-term frameworks of decision-making. This ad hoc governance keeps the state oscillating between the poles of being an effective, resilient state or a failed one.
