Reforms Agenda

Fiscal imbalance Scenario

Reforms Agenda is the collective demand of 220 million population of Pakistan in the face of the gravest economic challenge ever seen by Pakistan.

When the country was at the verge of almost an economic collapse.

When some about two years ago only the current account deficit exceeding $20 billion (an alarming figure, quite formidable to handle), coupled with expensive energy production, paralyzed exports etc.

Current government girt up its groin to deal with these gigantic issues with it Reforms Agenda.

Condition of civil institutions

The current regime had no idea about the intensity of the immense number of issues piled up by the mis-governance and the mismanagement  of former governments that led the civil institutions to the verge of debacle.

Yes, it was all about the decrepit situation of civil institutions of the country that were poorly led under political behest leaving and forgetting behind their very and meritorious motive and purpose for what they were actually formed to deal with.

The current regime had initially thought that while dealing with big economic challenges, the process of strengthening of civil institutions would eventually take place and the gradual improvements would automatedly be seen.

But they had either overlooked or had no idea about the gravity of the situation lying in civil institutions.

The picture depicted the sad story about civil institutions identical to the issue of current account deficit (formidable to handle). This again needed a push for Reforms Agenda in this section as well.

Over-inductions, non-productiveness, utter loss of system for accountability made the civil institutions posturing like dilapidated buildings of primordial periods lying dormant with no utility at all. 

National flag carrier PIA was faltering in under its own weight having staffing at 450 per fleet, the highest in the world.

The productive Steel Mill growing with profits decade and half before now lying idle staring someone to attend on its wounds.

PTV, Radio, Railways, Postal Services all were putting up very deplorable and ugly picture that one cannot easily decide either to disband them and erect anew or to improve the existent entity.  

Such a sorrow story of each civil institution sought Reforms Agenda to be implemented on priority as a special case.

The functional civil institutions are the foundation layer for any government to function effectively.

Impacts of past experiments for betterment

The country has gone through so many experiments since its establishment, but all the experiments were carried out with an ad hoc approach or on the basis of certain petty individual gains.

One of them was the recent 18th Amendment aiming to devolve the Departments to function under Provincial Authority so that the resources are best available to the citizens in an efficient manner.

However such brilliant motive seemed to serve a certain elite class rather than the common citizens exacerbating the situation more than it was before.

Thus it was anticipated from the current regime that it would holistically address the issues on long term basis leaving no space for ad hoc approach.

Current regime reform agenda

The Federal Government of Pakistan was pushing these days to bring about Reforms Agenda related to its functioning machinery. The main feature of reforms included appropriation of manpower running the Federal Government.

Cabinet committee was constituted for analyzing the prevailing manpower situation in various departments, determining the volume of employees, looking into the working mechanism and chalking out the proposal with decisions about the way forward.

The cabinet committee had shared its decision with Cabinet on March 31, 2021 about the reform agenda with comprehensive insight and plan. The recommendations of the committee maintained the option of manpower rationalization as the main feature of Reforms Agenda.

Terrible facts surfaced by committee

The committee had surfaced the most concerning information that the total expenditure of the Federal Government in 2010 was PKR 175 billion.

After 18th Amendment to the constitution (2010) in which several ministries and departments were devolved to function under provinces it was envisaged that the Federal Government would then see significant reduction in its expenditure.

Contrary to the fact, instead of reduction in expenses they augmented to PKR 500 billion as recorded during 2015 – 2017.

This was by virtue of haphazard and unmethodical inductions made by PPP and PML-N regimes after the 18 amendment  in various ministries/departments of the Federal Government.

Such inductions had not relieved the expenses even after the devolution of bulk of ministries and departments to Provincial Governments.

Total number of employees in Federal Government as recorded during 2019-2020 stood at 955,000 working in different ministries/secretariats and other associated and attached departments.

It was briefed that 565000 employees were working in Secretariat and its attached departments and the remaining 390,000 employees were working in different autonomous, semi-autonomous bodies and corporations, and civil armed forces and security organizations.

From that total number of employees serving federal government machinery, the proportion of employees having grades 1-16 was around 95% and they were drawing 80-85% in salaries from total expenditures.

Officers to staff ratio was recorded as 1:20 in autonomous, semi- autonomous bodies/corporations and security organizations, however the same stood at 1:6 in Secretariat and its attached departments.

Most alarming was the determined fact that subsequent to the 18th Amendment which involved devolution of the bulk of federal government set up to provincial authority, supposed to bring significant drop in federal expenses.

Instead the situation developed otherwise and it was due to the inductions that were made in central government machinery. The official record stated that 829,000 inductions were made from 2010 -11 to 2016 -17 (Post 18th Amendment Period).

Thus it had not brought any reduction in federal government expenditures rather inflicted a tremendous pressure on the federal government, squeezing and making it unable to function.

Such inductions figured 137,000 new employees in Secretariat and its attached departments in 2016 – 17 alone (during the PML-N Government). The recruitments in autonomous, semi-autonomous bodies were recorded to have been 21,000 during the same period.

The proportion of those new inductions stood 35% in law & order, security and civil armed forces, 20%  in infrastructure, railways, highways, postal and aviation, 18% in the energy sector, 12% in data, training, research and judiciary and 5% in each of them in social sector, commercial and taxation etc.

It was also brought forward that the federal government had made savings of PKR 28 billion from the previous manpower rationalization. 

Action Plan 

Looking into such a harmful situation the federal government in line with decisions of cabinet committee was now drastically making serious attempts for implementing its Reforms Agenda that included manpower rationalization to the targeted 1:3 (officer to staff ratio).

The current manpower appropriation being part of Reforms Agenda by the federal government would introduce an e-filing and e-office mechanism which does not require huge manpower enabling it to achieve the target set as 1:3 (officer and staff).