ISLAMABAD:
If there is a desire to commence the initial reform process and rid the Planning Commission (PC) of myriad anomalies, a number of key changes and interventions will need to be pursued with reform-oriented and impartial mindset.
First four key points have already been discussed in the first part of the article published on February 26, 2024. Further steps include:
Fifth, reform of the ecosystem: It ought to be fully appreciated that at least a semi-reform of the PC may be needed today as the commission did not evolve with changing economic realities. While the PC is relaunched in the existing ecosystem, it should be understood that it still has to interact with the existing system to deliver, which may not change quickly in tandem.
As such while there may be a spectrum of changes which can be introduced at the new entity, they may not work effectively unless the existing system, which interacts with the existing PC, also begins to reorient slowly with the new entity.
As such creating a new entity will do little good unless key ministries, departments, and provinces are nudged to align with the updated and upgraded mandate of the new entity.
This appears a demanding task but remains achievable if small nudges to the overall ecosystem are made with the clear vision to have an entity which is empowered to not only produce quality documents and intellectual ideas but also to have the force of law to execute, implement and ensure economic and financial resources are in hand to deliver policies in play.
Fiscal discipline, revenue generation and expenditure, national debt, commerce and trade are some of the important areas which require re-orientation in the medium to long run evolution to make the new PC a truly effective entity.
Sixth, data access and driven: The new entity must be facilitated by full automation and digital platforms making it efficient, transparent and data-driven for improved decision-making.
While the above is needed to help it operate as a world-class planning entity, limited planning can be done if the new entity does not have access to valuable economic, commercial, energy and other deposits of databases across federal and provincial ministries and departments.
For example, presently the PC has to reach out to ministries for any data relating to energy, mining, trade or companies amongst others in order to carry out detailed and in-depth analysis to offer informed advice. Most of the time this inhibits the PC to offer any meaningful and independent advice to the government as it continues to rely on draft summaries generated by relevant ministries for views and feedback.
This is a major challenge to support data-driven research and advice for informed decisions as databases are hoarded within various ministries and departments. The enactment of the new entity must ensure this aspect is addressed.
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Seventh, organisational structure: The organisational structure of the new entity needs to be reimagined in order to work well with the prevalent ecosystem and private sector.
The organisational structure has to be such that it ought to build-in better representation and coordination with provincial representatives. At the moment, policies and provincial Annual Development Plans (ADPs) are seldom discussed in detail, which leads to lack of coordination, activity duplication, and waste of resources.
Apart from strong HR and administration departments, the new entity must have a strong research and policy department, which should house some of the best-in-class researches and professionals.
The new entity must have on-ground representation in the provincial P&D departments in order to better coordinate planning activities at the federal level. There ought to be a few high-powered working party forums where all federal and provincial policies need to be discussed and debated.
The role of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) should be housed within the new entity so all economic and financial matters are better aligned with existing policies.
Further, all provinces should present their ADPs for in-depth debate and discussion to the relevant working party so there is a clear understanding and alignment of federal and provincial objectives, resource allocation and policy harmonisation.
Working parties may decide to raise any matter to National Economic Council (NEC), as appropriate.
Eighth, human resource: Presently, the Planning Commission has 14 members including the PC deputy chairman and the prime minister. Officers within each technical section are regular government employees of MoPD&SI.
These officers are seconded to the PC by MoPD&SI and attached with each member of the PC according to their sector expertise. This mode of human resource deployment must end.
The new entity must be able to recruit its own staff, independent of MoPD&SI. This would mean having a strong human resource department, which is empowered to recruit the most appropriate human resource from the market at market-based packages.
Senior officers of the new commission must be fully responsible and accountable for their teams and must have a meaningful say in human resource development, retention, compensation and career progression.
In the existing PC, while Annual Confidential Report (ACR) is signed by relevant members, real authority remains enshrined in the office of the Principal Accounting Officer.
Given the commission’s nature of work and one of its roles as an apex think tank, it must be able to attract the best-in-class human resource and retain it, both locally and internationally. This will require a commission, which works nimbly and operates similar to a private sector organisation given it has to attract people from the private sector.
The new entity should be headed by a professional; it must never be open to political leaders, present or past, and should have the force of the law to protect it from political appointees.
Ninth, reporting: The new commission should report to the prime minister and the NEC and should be positioned as not only a planning body but also a premier think tank to the NEC and the PM.
In summation, it must be understood that semi-reform and subsequent evolutionary process of the PC may be an uphill task, however, it is an undertaking which must be pursued. It should also be appreciated that the PC has a vast overarching mandate with interactions with myriad government ministries and departments; it holds a centre stage.
As such, changes to the PC will inadvertently require adjustments in the workings of key ministries that work closely with the PC or areas where the mandate of the PC has sway. Those ministries will also need to adjust, which can be done in phases.
Semi-reform and evolution of the PC is not of the PC only, but if the journey is commenced with intent, it may well be the nucleus which ushers in ecosystem’s reform and evolution, which has been sought for some time now.
The writer is ex-member (private sector development & competitiveness), the Planning Commission of Pakistan and has also worked with Citigroup in Pakistan, Qatar, Hong Kong and Singapore
Published in The Express Tribune, March 11th, 2024.
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