Govt proposes changes in the civil service structure

ISLAMABAD: The bureaucracy of Pakistan has often faced criticism for its failure in delivering the goods. Be it corruption, red tapism and irregularities in law enforcement, it is the bureaucracy that comes under the radar. Keeping that in mind, the government has proposed various structural changes in the recruitment and promotion of the officers.

The proposal initially prepared by Ministry of Planning, Development & Special Initiatives (MPD&SI) was shared with the Federal Secretaries for, Establishment, Health and Education; The Special Secretary Cabinet Division; Additional Secretaries for Finance and Planning; Secretary Federal Public Service Commission, Rector National School of Public Policy, Member Governance, Chief Governance and others on Friday.

As per details, during a meeting which was chaired by Minister of PD&SI Ahsan Iqbal, a number of recommendations for improvement in the public sector, prepared after extensive consultations, were presented.

As per documents, the ministry, as one of the major steps, has proposed to provide an option of taking CSS exams in Urdu, while making it bi-lingual, which could result in a major change in the recruitment criterion of officers. The ministry believes that language should not be a barrier to entry for talented candidates.

Another important proposal made for the reforms is to set 16 years of education as the minimum criteria for appearing in the CSS exam. Presently at least 14 years of education is mandatory for appearing in the competitive examination.

Furthermore, another major change that the ministry has proposed is to introduce three professional clusters (general, finance & economics and information) for the CSS exam at the entry level. This is to be done on the basis of relevant professional qualifications.

The same solution was also proposed by former President SBP, Dr Ishrat Hussain, as Advisor to former Prime Minister Imran Khan for Institutional Reforms & Austerity. He was reportedly, more interested in dividing the existing officers into various categories, which remained undone for opposition he faced by the bureaucrats.

The new proposals made by the planning ministry, documents show, however, are to make the changes/ categories in the recruitment process, thus the same may not face opposition from existing officers.

It was also proposed previously that only the relevant officials (like commerce, diplomacy, engineering, medical etc) should head the respective ministries, departments and divisions as secretary/directors etc.

Another reform the ministry proposed is to improve the existing training structure by introducing senior leadership courses. Besides, it has proposed to recruit faculty members at National School of Public Policy (NSPP) and other professional training institutions through a competitive process and improve their remuneration structure. 

The proposed reforms included establishing the National University of Public Policy & Administration (NUPPA) on the model of National Defense University, inculcating data sciences and greater utilization of information and communication technologies for decision making and citizen engagement and introducing training programs for staff in grades 1-16.

The proposals further include strengthening FPSC by adding additional members, establishing digital platforms and launching campaigns to attract civil servants from under privileged groups and remote areas.

The ministry, through the initiative, wishes to enhance the role of Establishment division as specialized HR Management, career progression and organizational development organization, appoint professional HR Managers at key ministries through a development project at the initial stage, and facilitate annual performance agreements between the ministries and the PM Office.

It has been proposed to introduce Citizen’s Charter as a mechanism for time bound public service delivery to the citizens in Islamabad Capital Territory and introduce Capital Health Authority and Capital Education Authority at Islamabad Capital Territory. 

As per the documents to introduce Engineers Group in technical ministries, a committee has been proposed to constitute under the chairpersonship of secretary establishment division to prepare a report in this regard within 7 days.

According to insiders, the top bureaucrats, who attended the meeting, have initially endorsed the proposals. The committee constituted for addressing some technical issues would finalize its findings soon.

It may be mentioned here that Dr Ishrat Husain had previously faced immense challenges in his past efforts to reform the government structure, including downsizing the federal government employees, and successfully reducing the number of government institutions from over 400 to 334. He was tasked to streamline the governance and function of over 4 million civil servants in the country, 1 million in the federal capital and 3 million employed by provincial governments.

As per a statement issued by the ministry, Ahsan Iqbal, during the meeting on Friday, remarked that in view of the emerging digital revolution and resultant empowerment of the citizens, the public sector needs to reinvent itself, in order to ensure quality service delivery. There is a widening trust deficit between the state and the citizens due to deteriorating standards of service delivery. Public sector needs to be agile and innovative to meet the new challenges. 

It is high time that Pakistan improves professional capacity in the public sector and aligns recruitment & training systems with the new dynamics.