"House of the Federation" has been added in the Senate emblem, in order to reflect the constitutional scheme of creation of Senate of Pakistan in the emblem.
Transparency and Openness
-- Members' attendance and information pertaining to pay and allowances of Chairman, Deputy Chairman and Senators is being provided on the Senate Website.
-- Setting example of self-accountability, laid the Budget of the Senate for the FY 2016-17 and the expenditures for the last four financial years were laid before the House.
-- Acknowledging the need for a self- accountability mechanism, Senate has adopted a Code of Conduct for the Members. A Committee on Ethics is being constituted to oversee the effective implementation of the said Code and will also deal with cases of its violation.
-- Senate's Website has been revamped to adhere to the principle of transparency, openness and accessibility.
-- Senate proceedings are being webcasted live on the website.
Parliamentary Outreach:
-- Public petition process allows ordinary citizens to have direct access to the Senate and participate in the political process.
-- Students and other segments of society are being invited to visit the Parliament House along with detailed briefings on the working of Senate.
-- Senate of Pakistan, for the first time in the Parliamentary history of Pakistan celebrated the constitution of Pakistan on 13th April, 2015. This tradition continued and the Constitution day was commemorated this year as well.
-- Senate has initiated the process of institutional dialogue.
-- Through Parliamentary Education Program (PEP) efforts will be made to bridge the gaps and repose the trust of the public in the Parliament and Parliamentarians through continuous information, engagement empowerment.
House
-- Attendance Register has been placed outside the Official Gallery for marking of attendance by the officials! officers of the Ministries! Divisions business of which will be on the Orders of the Day.
-- Ministers, after every three months, appear before the House and make reports on all matters referred by the House and recommendations made by Committees.
-- Deliberate attempts were made in the past to discontinue the Senate; the symbol of continuity by renumbering Sessions at one in the years 1985 and 2003 ie during the period of dictatorship. This was undone by a resolution passed by the Senate of Pakistan on 21-04-2016, wherein, the distortion in the facts was done away with by continuing the numbering of Sessions.
-- Senate Rules have been amended to provide for submission of notices through E-mail in respect of Questions, Calling Attention Notices and Adjournment Motions.
Committees
-- In a landmark development of the Parliamentary history of the country, Senate on 28th July, 2016, adopted a motion, approving amendments for giving membership to members of the Upper House of Parliament in the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) which previously comprised Members of the National Assembly only. Six members of Senate one from each province, one from FATA and one from Islamabad Capital Territory (lOT), will represent the House of Federation in the PAC. National Assembly Rules have also been amended in the regard.
-- Meetings of Business Advisory Committee are being held on regular basis.
-- Committee of the Whole of Senate's entire membership of the House sitting as a committee meets on issues of national importance. The committee has met on issues like FATA reforms, Senate mode of elections, speedy and inexpensive justice and student unions.
-- A Committee on Delegated legislation has been formed to scrutinize and report to the Senate of Pakistan that whether the powers to make rules, regulations, by-laws, schemes or other statutory instruments have been timely and properly exercised.
Secretariat
-- MOUs haven been signed with eleven universities of Islamabad for the short term Senate internship programme.
- A programme named Clerks of the Parliament' is initiated by the Senate to offer long-term internships to bright young graduates and use their skills in the Senate Secretariat by inducting the best ones in the permanent human resource of the secretariat.