Khyber Pakhtunkhwa initiates reforms in health, education sectors

A reform process was initiated on the voice of a common man by the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to do reforms in the sectors of Health and Education with the support of DFID. These sectors required desperate attention because of their devastated infrastructure and services and are further deterioration day by day.
The donor agreed to provide grant on the condition to meet certain targets in each sector, thus calling them conditional grants. Buner and DI Khan were initially selected for the project. This time, bottom up approach was considered and grants were provided directly to the community through Parent Teacher Councils (PTC). The process achieved a great success as the additional work was done in the same costs. This project included maintenance works like provision of basic facilities and additional classrooms in education and Anti natal care and immunisation of children in health sector.
A documentary launching ceremony on the successful execution of districts conditional grants by the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa took place in Islamabad Club on October 11, 2012. The ceremony was well attended by the provincial ministers/MPAs, administrative secretaries/Officer, Officials from the Districts Buner and DI Khan and some representatives of the PTCs. The development partners of the province including the World Bank, GIZ, EU, DFID and CIDA also participated. The session was started with recitation of few verses from the Holy Quran. The secretary finance in his opening remarks paid tribute to the courage of Malala Yousafzai. He updated the participants briefly on the PFM reforms undertaken by the government and the problems/issues necessitating these reforms. The additional secretary finance shared the basic concepts of the conditional grants mechanism as introduced under the policy frame work of Output Based Budgeting. The standard operating procedures devised and the results achieved were shared with the forum. His presentation was followed by the video of the documentary, which was seen by all the participants very keenly and received greet ovation.
In recognition of the efforts and hard work of the departmental policy wings, district authorities and PTCs tribute was given to them. Israr Khan Gandapur and MPA from district DI Khan shared with the audience his personal experience during the execution of this instrument of inter government transfer and the reasons which made him a great supporter of the idea, to which initially he was a great opponent.