He said that government is also setting up an Excellence & Innovation Fund to encourage innovative ideas in governance. Similarly, a grant of Rs 10 million would be extended to those ministries and departments which will bring forth innovative ideas for improving governance and public delivery system, he added. The minister also announced that government is starting a "Citizen Satisfaction Survey" to compile "Citizen Satisfaction Index" about the public sector institutions' performance through their inputs.
Declaring that present ACR (annual confidential report) system for evaluation of performance of civil servants has become obsolete, he said that a new ACR system on the basis attributes of leadership and soft skills will be introduced and for this purpose, a new pro forma is being designed using scientific techniques.
The minister said that since e-governance is being recognised as an effective mean for modernising public sector and improving governance, Establishment Division and Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) have been directed to switch their day-to-day operations from manual to automated one, providing integrated environment. The minister on this occasion also announced that the Establishment Division is being renamed as Human Resource and Organisational Development Division.
He said that Islamabad Model City initiative is being materialised and would be launched soon. Citizen-Client Charters of all ministries would be formulated to redress the public complaints promptly, he said. Reiterating that tax reforms are very critical for our future, Ahsan Iqbal said: "Our ambitions for development are huge, which can be financed through mobilisation of resources. For this, government is also focusing on expanding tax-to-GDP ratio. Corruption is an evil and government is committed to root it out by bringing transparency, accountability and better governance in every sphere. Clean track record of the current government is evident from Transparency International's reports which upgraded Pakistan in last two years by decreasing country's corruption perception."
He said that the first generation reforms package has been finalised and would be presented to prime minister in January, 2016 for approval. "Reforms are ongoing process and would continue. These reforms are being done in consultation with all stakeholders for creating ownership. Status quo is the most daunting task, but the present government is fully committed to carry out its agenda of reforms to ensure modernisation of public sector and to improve public delivery system.
The minister said that government is investing a huge amount for introducing reforms in education and health sectors. Moreover, efforts for creating conducive investment climate as well as for introducing reforms for 'ease of doing business' by removing red-tapism are also underway, he said.
"In fact, the reforms agenda is aimed at introducing participatory and collaborative governance in the country to bring political and economic stability," the minister said and added: "Having introduced the prudent and vibrant policies, Pakistan is now a changed country, being a safe heaven for billion dollars investment. Things are now within our grasp to seize the opportunity in the form of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) by promoting the optimism and positive thinking in the country."
Briefing the participants about various initiatives taken by the present government in connection with its reform agenda, he pointed out that it was for the first time that performance contract of ministries have been devised by virtue of which the selected 11 ministries and divisions would sign an agreement with prime minister about their deliverables in one year. These would be translated into their Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). He said that capacity-building programme has been launched and 1,000 senior officers from grade 17-22 would be imparted 15-day training in modern management techniques.