ISLAMABAD: The registration issue of international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) has reared its ugly head, as Ambassadors of US, Canada, European Union, Japan and Norway have officially informed Pakistan that they won’t be providing any development and humanitarian aid.
As a result of this development, the government has called a meeting where it will meet with donors for resolving the issue permanently, reported The News.
The row intensified during tenure of ex-Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan when he decided to move dealing of INGO’s from Economic Affairs Division (EAD) to Interior Ministry.
This joint letter from ambassadors of US, Canada, EU, Norway and Japan expressed major concerns over the registration delay of IGNO’s and termed it worrisome. This development comes amidst a delay in issuance of letters to INGO’s, whose registrations still haven’t been processed by the ministry.
In the letter, the ambassadors said they back the clear and transparent registration process for INGO’s. However, they added the rejection letters for registration process by INGO’s issued by the ministry do not clearly elaborate the reasons.
Furthermore, the letter said the timeframe for closing operations for an INGO was sixty days and time for filing an appeal was ninety days, meaning they would force to cease operations even before their appeals get heard.
