Citizen Engagement in Local Governance A study of City District Government Faisalabad

7 Citizen Engagement in Local Governance A study of City District Government Faisalabad S.M. Khatib Alam Mehreen Hosain Muhammad Tariq

March 2008

TS S E ER

INT Y ER N IT H T U GE MM O T O NG GC I N T I T ER AC H R T O P GE O P T U S ING D I C DE TION A T L U CONS

INFORMATION SHARING

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

This document is produced as part of the Strengthening Decentralised Local Government in Faisalabad (SDLGF) Project for the purpose of disseminating lessons learnt from the project. The views are not necessarily those of DFID or the City District Government Faisalabad (c) SDLGF March 2008 Parts of this case study may be reproduced for educational use, provided that such material is not printed and sold.

The authors expect that, any material which is used will be acknowledged accordingly.

Printed by: FaizBakht Printers, The Mall, Jhang (Punjab) Pakistan.

VISION “Pre-empting Poverty, Promoting Prosperity”

MISSION STATEMENT “We will provide high quality services which compare with the best in the country. We will work with everyone who wants a better future for our District. We will establish an efficient, effective and accountable District Local Government, which is committed to respecting and upholding women, men and children’s basic human rights, responsive towards people’s needs, committed to poverty reduction and capable of meeting the challenges of the 21st Century. Our actions will be driven by the concerns of local people”

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This case study is the culmination of efforts by a number of individuals from Government and the technical assistance team. Firstly it is important to thank all those who have cooperated with the team preparing this case study not only in the last few weeks but over the course of the last four years. They have been critical to the work and demonstrated what is possible to achieve in Government when the right set of conditions prevail.

We would also like to thank the communities and elected representatives of the district that assisted the SPU team in implementing this project and its various components.

The authors wish to thank Rana Zahid Tauseef, City District Nazim; Maj (Retd.) Azam Suleman Khan, District Coordination Officer and Dr. Tariq Sardar, EDO Finance & Planning for their valuable contribution in making this project a huge success.

We are also thankful to: Mr. Ch. Zahid Nazir, ex-District Nazim Faisalabad; Mr. Tahir Hussain, ex-DCO Faisalabad and Mr. Athar Hussain Khan Sial, ex-DCO Faisalabad for their valuable contribution to the success of this project.

We are further thankful to all CDGF employees (past and present) and CDGF partner departments but we would like to specifically mention by name the following: Mr. Syed Mumtaz Hussain Shah, EDO Education; Mr. Shabbir Ahmad Ch., EDO Community Development; Dr. M. Javed, EDO Health; Mr. Ashiq Hussain Dogar, EDO Information Technology; Mr. Syed Mubashar Shah, District Officer Coordination (DOC); Mr. Hassan Raza Saeed, District Officer, Human Resource Management; Mr. Wasim Ajmal, ex-EDO Finance & Planning and Mr. Asad Islam Mahni, ex-EDO Finance & Planning for their efforts in successfully implementing reforms in their departments.

We are thankful to all DFID Project Advisers and Management that have assisted in this project since its start and we would like to specifically thank Mr. Mosharraf Zaidi, Governance Advisor, DFID Pakistan; Mr. Wajahat Anwar, Deputy programme Manager, Accountability and Empowerment team, DFID Pakistan; Ms. Jackie Charlton, DFID; Mr. Alistar Moir, DFID Pakistan and Ms. Nighat-un-Nisa, DFID Pakistan for their continuous support and professional technical guidance since their involvement in 2004.

Our thanks are also to Dr. James Arthur, Ms. Janet Gardener and Mr. Shahid Sharif for their valuable inputs throughout the project.

We are thankful to all the SPU team members for their dedication, hard work and the many late hours spent designing, implementing and documenting the work of this project. These include: Nadir Ehsan, Mahmood Akhtar, Imran Yousafzai, Muhammad Shahid Alvi, Kashif Abbas, Ajaz Durrani, Farhan Yousaf, Muntazir Mehdi, Gul Hafeez Khokhar, Mirza Muhammad Ramzan, Muhammad Sharif, Sumara Khan, Humaira Khan, Saima Sharif, Mubarak Ali, Noor Muhammad Khan, Nuzhat Hanif, Syed Sheraz Akhtar, all the master trainers and training associates of the Institute of Learning, GIS team members, all long and short-term international and national consultants.

FOREWORD The new Local Government system is based on decentralisation of fiscal, administrative and political powers at the grass root level. This system has tried to broaden the base of political participation by ensuring the participation of women, peasants, workers and minorities in the political process. It has also provided opportunities to the common citizen to play their role in the local development. In fact, the spirit of the new Local Government system lies in transparency and accountability. This system has opened new avenues for citizens to play an active role, not only in holding Local Governments accountable but also in sharing responsibility for local development and service delivery.

It is our responsibility to be more transparent and share information with citizens to allow them to play their role, but also the responsibility of citizens to demand this of us. The CDGF has taken a number of initiatives both from the supply and demand sides, to promote and strengthen citizen engagement and accountability. The CCB Help Desk, Customer Call Centre, Pre-budget consultation, and performance based budgeting are some supply side initiatives, while citizen access to information, street theatre, radio programmes, citizen perception survey, participatory planning, DCC of NGOs and CCB Network are mechanisms to strengthen the demand side of accountability.

We have also built the capacity of our elected representatives and staff on participatory planning to sensitise them on the need of participatory planning and citizen engagement. I believe that all these initiatives have been instrumental in better targeting & eventually improving service delivery. Now, our elected representatives are well aware about our performance.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank our City District Nazim for his valuable support to the reforms in our district. I would also like to congratulate my City District team members especially all the EDOs for working to achieve the objectives in their departmental reforms programme.

Finally, I would like to thank our major partners in development, the Department for International Development (DFID) UK and their management consultants GHK International Ltd., for assisting Faisalabad City District through the project “Strengthening Decentralized Local Government in Faisalabad�.

Maj. (Rtd.) Azam Suleman Khan District Co-ordination Officer City District Government Faisalabad March 2008 The Clock Tower, symbol of Faisalabad

PREFACE The City District Government Faisalabad is working to promote good governance. We believe that transparency and accountability are the fundamental pillars of good governance.

Our efforts have included new tools for information sharing with our stakeholders; reengineering of business processes to accommodate more citizen space and voice in local decision making; institutional changes to restore the confidence of citizen of Faisalabad in their District Government and lastly strengthening and supporting civil society organisations to enable them to play their role.

We believe that public information is the first step towards promoting citizen participation in Local Government decision making. We have developed the City District Government website www.faisalabad.gov.pk to ensure that information and resources of pubic interest are available and are being updated on a regular basis. We are also sharing information on our reform initiatives through newsletters widely circulated to Government, NGOs and other projects and programmes. To reach poor and marginal communities in slums, kachi abadis and far flung rural areas, who may be less literate, we are using the electronic media and an innovative street theatre programme that we are proud of.

To promote more citizen engagement and strengthen their voice in decision making, we are also changing our way of working and re-engineering our business processes. This includes the introduction of budget consultations which we hope will be a prelude to participatory budgeting, establishment of the Citizen Community Board (CCB) Help Desk and the Customer Call Centre.

We also believe that a strong and vibrant civil society is critically important for promoting good governance. Towards this end, we have supported and strengthened civil society and community based organisations such as District Coordination Council of NGOs and CCB Network. These forums have played an important role in helping us to improve service delivery in the District. I am proud to say that City District Government Faisalabad is the only district in the Punjab which has taken such innovative steps to promote citizen engagement within the District. Our learning is that working in collaborative and participatory ways is the only way to make us more efficient and effective in delivering our mandate. I would like to appreciate the SPU team for its efforts for promoting citizen engagement in the District. I am also appreciative of the contribution of all the EDOs and DOs for extending their full cooperation and assistance in completing this project.

Dr. Tariq Sardar Additional Project Director Strengthening Decentralised Local Government in Faisalabad March 2008

Office of the District Co-ordination Officer, Faisalabad

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS FOREWORD PREFACE ACRONYMS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

01

BACKGROUND

04

General Context New Accountabilities; New Space for Citizens Faisalabad and its Citizens

04 04 08 09

THE CASE Strategic Overview THE DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION The Design Implementation Enhancing Voice Mechanisms Alternative Approaches to Service Delivery

09 11 11 12 14 18 20

IMPACTS A Transparent Government and Better Informed Citizens Enhanced Voice, Client Power and Responsiveness A More Efficient and Effective Local Government OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES Opportunities Challenges

20 20 21 24 24 25

SUSTAINABILITY

27

LESSONS AND REFLECTIONS

29

CONCLUSIONS

31

BIBLIOGRAPHY

32

FIGURES Figure 1: Figure 2:

Routes to Accountability (WDR 2004) 06 Instruments used for promoting citizen engagement in District Faisalabad 12

TABLES Table 1: Table 2:

CDGF guiding principles for change and potential citizen engagement initiatives City District Government Faisalabad and Citizen Engagement

10 22

Table of Contents Table 3:

Opportunities and possible measures for Strengthening Citizen Engagement within the Local Governments

25

Framework for Citizen Engagement in the Punjab Local Government Ordinance 2001

33

ANNEX Annex 1:

Acronyms

ACRONYMS ADB CCB CDGF CIDA CSO DAO DCC DCO DDC DFID DO DTCE EDO FMIS GIS HR HRMIS IoL IT LGO MIS NAM NGO NORAD P&D PIFRA PIU PPP PRMP SDC SDLGF SPU TMA UC UNDP WDR WSD

Asian Development Bank Citizen Community Board City District Government Faisalabad Canadian International Development Agency Civil Society Organisation District Accounts Office District Coordination Council District Coordination Officer District Development Committee Department for International Development District Officer Devolution Trust for Community Empowerment Executive District Officer Financial Management Information System Geographic Information System Human Resources Human Resource Management Information System Institute of Learning Information Technology Local Government Ordinance Management Information System New Accounting Model Non Government Organisation Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation Planning & Development Project to Improve Financial Reporting and Auditing Project Implementation Unit Public Private Partnership Punjab Resource Management Programme Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Strengthening Decentralised Local Government in Faisalabad Strategic Policy Unit Town / Tehsil Municipal Administration Union Council United Nations Development Programme World Development Report Whole School Development

Executive Summary

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In 2001, the Government of Pakistan embarked on a radical reform programme devolving power to 6,458 Local Governments under the provinces at district, 'tehsil' (town) and union levels. While not Pakistan's first experience with decentralisation, this reform was distinguished by the legal cover provided to the new system through to 2009, and the new space accorded to citizens in planning and implementing services and in the oversight of implementation. Designed to address the crisis of governance faced by the nation, the reform intended to put in place the essential elements of good governance based on the principles of subsidiarity, with expected outcomes in poverty reduction.

As Pakistan's third largest district and the base of the textile industry, Faisalabad District had always been keen to improve its performance and ensure that it was amongst the country's top districts in terms of public services and good Government. It was swift to capitalise on the opportunities offered by the Government's devolution plan to put in place its own package of reforms. It was supported in this regard by the UK Government's Department for International Development (DFID) through the Strengthening Decentralised Local Government in Faisalabad (SDLGF) project.

The devolution plan had intended to remove deep-rooted social inequities and shift entrenched client-patron relationships, by providing space for citizens to engage at all levels.

New and enhanced roles were expected of citizens; in participative governance and exacting accountability from the state. Faisalabad made a policy decision, strongly backed by its political and executive arms, to build on this and ensure that citizens were at the centre of all its reform process. For the City District Nazim, there was much political capital to be gained; while for the executive arm there were new efficiencies which could result from new and more open ways of doing business. The District chose to work both on the horizontal axis of accountability improving internal systems and processes for accountability and on the demand side of the equation, or social accountability- building citizen voice and mechanisms for enhancing and channelling client power. Importantly, its reform and its decision to hinge reform on engaging with its citizens was governed by a corporate plan and a series of strategic operational plans for sectors, which had the approval of the District Council. Citizen focused initiatives which would contribute to the City District's guiding principles for change were identified early on, and helped to define strategies.

A Transparent Government and Better Informed Citizens Faisalabad based its reforms on its commitment to transparency and the generation of sound information, based on new management information systems, and available for public scrutiny. It also went further and developed a communication strategy to ensure that information on service delivery, the reform and on its internal processes, particularly its financial status, was available to different audiences in a form that was accessible and easy to digest. The District is the first to ensure that all its financial information is available in the public sphere. For citizens, information was made available through the City District's website, newsletters, radio and an innovative street theatre programme. The street theatre programme was targeted at marginal groups, in slums, kachi abadis and in far-flung rural areas, who under ordinary circumstances would have limited access to Government and information on decisions which affected their lives. The response to these mechanisms has

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Executive Summary been positive; the website has increasing numbers of hits, and communities have participated actively in the street theatre programme, taking the opportunity to question elected representatives on issues related to service delivery and the new Local Governments, and debating them amongst themselves.

Stronger Internal Processes and Better Horizontal Accountability Considerable work was undertaken by the City District on improving financial management information and better auditing procedures. Emphasis was also given to introducing performance management systems and a culture where staff members are held to account for non delivery on newly developed job descriptions. On an internal level, the CDGF also introduced tools to streamline processes and hold its departments accountable for failures in service delivery and in responding to citizens. The CCB Help Desk was introduced in response to citizen complaints that processes were long and proving to be a bottleneck for the participatory local development, the devolution plan had promised. The CDGF was able to reduce the processing time of CCB projects from several months to an average of 45 days.

The Customer Call Centre not only enhanced client power, but is also being used as a tool for internal accountability, where departments are required to resolve issues, or provide rational explanations for why a complaint can not be addressed. Linking the process to the regular departmental meetings with senior district managers has given it greater importance.

New Channels for Citizens to Exercise Voice The CDGF was aware that the demand side of the equation was also important- citizens had to play their role and be enabled to do so. The CDGF worked at several levels with citizens, going beyond simply providing information, and cursory consultations. An important initiative, spearheaded by the City District Nazim and DCO was the Citizen Perception Survey. Carried out on an unprecedented district wide scale, in all union councils, the Survey presented a bleak picture of service deficits in the District. Yet, the level of commitment to an open and transparent Government was so high that the leadership decided to bring all the findings out into the open and thereafter took concrete actions to target investments where particularly serious issues had been identified. Pre-budget consultations have provided a further platform for civil society and citizens to influence how the Government prioritises investments. To ensure that appropriate forums are developed, with the capacity to engage with Government on such issues, the District Coordination Council of NGOs has been strengthened and CCB networks formed at tehsil and district levels. These have interacted with the Government machinery and also played a far more active role in building the capacity of their members as well as in local development.

New Ways of Doing Business The CDGF has also opened itself up to new ways of doing business, going beyond the traditional modality of departmental service delivery to introduce new efficiencies. This is best demonstrated by the work in the education sector, which has had a particular focus. The Whole School Development (WSD) model has engaged parents, communities, students and teachers in the governance of the school and the preparation of School Development Plans.

Public-Private Partnerships have led to over 100 schools being partnered. As a result of introducing new partnerships and new actors, there have been improvements in enrolment,

2

Executive Summary school infrastructure, the motivation of staff, the relationship between schools and their communities and the overall learning environment for students. All of this is expected to result in positive learning outcomes.

The evidence indicates that Faisalabad has been able to progress along the 'participation ladder', moving from information sharing and consultation, to deciding and acting with citizens, and laying the basis of a community that is able to act independently in its own interests. There have been challenges in reaching this stage, particularly in changing institutional cultures and the mindset of departments used to operating through patronage and where secrecy and obfuscation are the norm.

There is also a huge chasm to bridge in rebuilding trust between citizens and the state. At the same time, strong political commitment to the change process enabled the work on citizen engagement as did the policy clarity on the issue, and the City District's ability, to think strategically and respond to opportunities through national and provincial initiatives, leaving it the space and internal resources to innovate.

The key lessons that emerge are:

Ensure strong and sustained political support at the highest level, keeping the political and executive arms fully engaged and ensure that this transformative urgency is communicated to lower tiers of Government. Champions are important for a newly emerging agenda; A clearly articulated policy framework is essential for retaining focus and ensuring legitimacy to the process; Recognise that these are long term and iterative processes; cultural transformations can not take place overnight, and trust has to be rebuilt between citizens and Government; Work on both supply and demand side instruments for accountability; one without the other can not be effective. Government must have the internal motivation and structures to be responsive to articulate citizen’s demands; Transparency and effective communication must underpin reform- without the right public information social accountability processes can not be undertaken; Deliver change- Citizen engagement can only work if citizens believe that Government will deliver on its promises; and Government must demonstrate its commitment to accountability and change.

Challenges undoubtedly remain and the CDGF has some way to go in achieving its goals.

There is a need to ensure a deeper and broader engagement with citizens, to have fullfledged processes for participatory planning and budgeting, more institutionalised mechanisms for public scrutiny and more partnerships for service delivery. A greater focus on reaching the poor and marginal, and ensuring that those who have been invited to participate are truly representative is also important to ensure that it is truly inclusive. There needs to be equity in partnerships and trust needs to be established between service providers, citizens and then nurtured.

All evidence indicates, however, that progress has been significant, and Faisalabad's achievements have paved the way for becoming a truly transparent, inclusive, effective, efficient and responsive Local Government.

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Background

BACKGROUND General Context The Strategic Policy Unit (SPU) was set up by the Faisalabad District Government in 2002, as a policy think-tank. Its key aim was to act as a conduit in the District from which all development programmes could be initiated. In 2004, the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) agreed to provide technical assistance to the district using the SPU as the platform from which change would be driven.

The SPU over a four year period has acted as a key resource fostering social capital within the city government and often being the focal point for local and international technical assistance and programme development. With a cohort of key technical resources and change management agenda it plays a key role in facilitating public sector reforms and is replicable. It has been instrumental in assisting Faisalabad become a modern administration.

In 2001 a process of radical political reform was initiated in Pakistan, devolving power to 6,458 Local Governments. The reform had three fundamental aims; 'to introduce new blood into a political system considered to be the domain of historically entrenched interests; to provide positive measures for marginalised citizens- women, workers, peasants to have access to politics; and to introduce a measure of stability into a turbulent political scene by creating a stronger line of accountability between new politicians and a local electorate'. The new system was designed to ensure citizen involvement in planning services and to provide mechanisms for citizen oversight of implementation.

The reform emerged in response to a deep-rooted crisis of governance that had resulted, amongst other things, in unacceptable social indicators - the worst amongst comparable countries - which undermined Pakistan's commitments to addressing poverty and meeting its international obligations. While addressing weak social service delivery, the enforcement of laws on property, labour and economic activities, and access to justice, were the articulated aims, the reform went to the root of the issue and attempted to achieve fundamental shifts in the power dynamic between citizens, elected leaders and public sector institutions. In shifting these relationships, the reform intended to lay the foundations for far-reaching improvements in governance, with expected outcomes in poverty reduction. Achieving this shift in power, in an essentially authoritarian and feudal socio-cultural milieu, has been one of the fundamental challenges for Pakistan's devolution programme. This case study documents the experience of CDGF and its efforts to foster new relationships between the state and its citizens.

New Accountabilities; New Space for Citizens Enhancing Systems of Accountability The Local Government Ordinance (LGO) of 2001 put in place a new system, which involved the abolition of the existing three-tiered structure under the province (division, district, tehsil), with new structures created at the district (city-districts in the provincial capitals and larger cities), tehsil and union levels. The union council, however, is the only directly elected tier of the system. While Pakistan had experienced prior waves of decentralisation and centralisation, this time the system was legally protected through the 17th Constitutional Amendment, to 2009. A distinguishing feature of the devolution plan was the new space accorded to citizens.

4

Background Pakistan's devolution programme took place against a global backdrop of decentralisation.

Around the world fiscal, political and administrative decentralisation had become an important part of public sector reform. The rationale varied, but in general such reforms were intended to deepen democracy and improve the delivery of local services, with the principle of 'subsidiarity' in mind. Bringing Government closer to the people was, in effect, intended to make it more responsive. Yet, this did not always happen, and Governments were not always more responsive and accountable. In fact Local Governments are often more susceptible to rent-seeking by public officials and elite capture by more powerful groups.

As one measure to counter clientelism and elite capture, the LGO 2001 and the Police Order of 2002 provided for a range of bodies to enable citizen engagement in local governance.

These include the Citizen Community Boards (CCBs - CCBs are grass-roots citizens' groups who are expected to act as partners to Government in developmental activities) and a range of local mechanisms for alternate dispute resolution, monitoring of court conduct, promoting justice, accountability of the police and administrative grievance redressal (Zila Muhtasib, Musalihat Anjumans, Insaaf or justice committees, village and neighbourhood councils, and monitoring committees at various levels). Annex 1 presents various sections of LGO 2001 related to citizen engagement.

The institutional changes and new structures were thus expected to create a new frame-work of accountabilities at several levels, contributing to improved governance. Accountability mechanisms generally operate along either a 'vertical' (external), or 'horizontal' (internal) axis, and the devolution programme in Pakistan intended to address both: Horizontal accountabilities: consisting of formal relationships within the state itself with one state actor having the formal authority to demand explanations and impose penalties on another, i.e. internal checks and oversight processes. In Pakistan's new governance structure these internal accountability mechanisms include Monitoring Committees, Audit, the District Ombudsman, Council, CCBs and the Judiciary. The new system had created many new mechanisms for horizontal accountability such as the Monitoring Committees and providing a formal role to CCBs; Vertical accountabilities: those external mechanisms in which citizens and their associations play direct roles in holding the powerful to account. Elections being the formal institutional channel of vertical accountability, the electorate would provide the checks on the Local Governments. Vertical accountabilities also include the collective exertion of pressure by civil society organisations (e.g. media, NGOs). The new system also provided for formal vertical checks through oversight bodies such as the District Public Safety Commissions.

The participation of citizens in the new Local Governments was fundamental, and went beyond prior more limited models of 'community participation' in local development and service delivery through the third sector (NGOs etc). The concept of citizenship was brought to the fore, encompassing both rights and responsibilities. This deeper form of participation was expected to leverage the envisaged shifts in power dynamics and change entrenched client-patron relationships which characterised the interaction between citizens and the state. These skewed relationships between citizens and elected representatives, administrators and providers of public services, enhanced vulnerabilities and reinforced poverty. Reform around these axes would result both in improving service delivery and empowering citizens.

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Background Citizen voice and Accountability Voice refers to both the capacity of people to express their views and the ways in which they do so through a variety of formal and informal channels and mechanisms. Voice can include complaint, organised protest, lobbying and participation in decision making, service delivery or policy implementation.

Bringing citizen voice and client focus into service delivery. Goetz, A. and Gaventa, J. IDS Working Paper 138, 2001.

The reform demanded new roles and responsibilities of citizens. To facilitate them in enacting these new roles, new capacities would need to be imparted. Voice and accountability are clearly linked. For citizens to exact accountabilities they needed both to understand their rights and responsibilities, but also to be able to exercise their 'voice' to ensure this. This is a two-way mutually reinforcing relationship, where 'voice' can strengthen accountability, including by demanding transparency, but also where accountability can also encourage voice by demonstrating that exercising voice can make a difference. The relationship is best summarised in the World Development Report (WDR) 2004 as depicted in Figure 1 (with the province playing an overall higher order role in regulating and incentivising the district to perform efficiently): Figure 1:

Routes to Accountability (WDR 2004) The State Politicians Policymakers

om c pa t

Vo ic e

L

C

e of accoun tab ili t

y

out gr n o

Citizens / Clients Coalitions/inclusion Non Poor

Short route Client Power

Poor

Providers Management Front line

Organisations

The new system enhanced the role of the citizen both in exercising 'voice' to senior decision makers and elected representatives, who in turn use their managerial influence over service providers to improve service delivery, which is viewed as the 'long route to accountability'.

However, the system also allowed for citizens to exert their 'voice' as 'clients' of services ('client power'), directly to providers, in what is viewed as the 'short route to accountability'.

This included direct participation in service delivery (e.g. through CCBs or other community mechanisms such as School Council Committees) or through other oversight bodies such as the citizen dispute resolution mechanisms and monitoring committees.

Social Accountability and New Forms of Engagement

Diagonal or 'social' accountability is a form of accountability operating between the vertical and horizontal dimension and refers to direct or indirect citizen engagement with horizontal accountability mechanisms for better oversight of state actions.

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A 'hybrid' form of accountability that has gained in importance in recent years is 'diagonal' accountability. While the electoral process is the most direct means of exacting 'vertical accountability', this can be a blunt instrument with which to hold Government accountable.

Elections do not always allow citizens to hold public actors accountable for specific decisions in a direct way. 'Social accountability' thus refers to the range of actions beyond voting, which allow citizens, civil society organisations and the independent media to hold public officials accountable.

In the past, these mechanisms have included civil society led actions such as public demonstrations, protests, media campaigns, advocacy campaigns, public interest lawsuits, investigative journalism etc. In more recent years new tools and opportunities have expanded

Background the space for citizens to engage with formal mechanisms of the state. New mechanisms include participatory public policy-making, participatory budgeting, public expenditure tracking, and citizen monitoring and evaluation of public service delivery. Transparency is a sine qua non; social accountability would not be possible if the right information were not available in the public sphere.

Traditionally, the discourse around public-sector reform had centred on 'horizontal/internal' or supply-side mechanisms. The recent discourse, however, has shifted to include these 'diagonal/external' or demand-side social accountability mechanisms, particularly in the light of the growing crisis of governance and legitimacy of the state. In both the countries of the developed and developing world, there is increasing concern over the lack of responsiveness, abuse of powers, corruption, and weak accountability of the state. In short, there has been a breakdown of confidence and communication between the state and its citizens. With distance between the two, the state continues to be non-responsive to citizen needs, and citizens disengaged from the institutions which govern them. Supply-side mechanisms on their own have been found to be necessary but insufficient to address the deep crisis of governance faced by states the world over.

Citizen Engagement Mechanisms at a Glance Citizen Community Boards: Formally registered bodies who receive at least 25 percent of the total budget of each tier of Local Government (earmarked and non-fungible) funds, to participate as partners in local development.

CCBs can be formed at each tier and have to contribute 20 percent towards each project.

Oversight/scrutiny bodies: monitoring committees at each tier, accounts committees, village and neighbourhood councils, District Public Safety Commission.

Alternate Dispute Resolution Mechanisms: Zila Mohtasib (District Ombudsman), Musalihat Anjuman (dispute resolution committees).

Grievance redressal: Insaaf or justice committees, District Public Safety Commission.

Source: Devolution in Pakistan. ADB/DFID/WB. 2004.

More recent calls for frameworks which support citizen engagement in local governance, seek to address this issue, with an emphasis on broader forms of accountability which enable multiple partners to hold institutions and policy-makers to account, and which involve social accountability as well as legal, fiscal and political forms. Pakistan's new system of local governance provided the space for such new forms of accountability through engaging citizens with the affairs of the state.

A gathering of female community members for Citizen Perception Survey

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Background

Faisalabad and its Citizens “This district has attempted to put its citizens not at the end, but at the centre of all its processes” DCO Faisalabad

The City District of Faisalabad, Pakistan's third largest district, was swift in responding to the opportunities presented by devolution. It had a vision for a poverty-free Faisalabad, further articulated in its Corporate Plan (2004) and Strategic Development Plan (2006) as 'Preempting Poverty, Promoting Prosperity'.

Its commitments were aligned to the Government of Punjab's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (P-PRSP), which included among its goals:

Governance reforms to achieve an efficient, accountable and service-oriented public sector; Reforms to improve service delivery in key sectors (especially basic social services); Fiscal and financial management reforms to improve governance in budget and financial management, adopt a Medium Term Budgetary Framework (MTBF), enhance effectiveness and accountability of expenditures and strengthen resource mobilisation.

This, along with its commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), defined the City District's vision, policy framework and strategic plans. A package of wide-ranging reforms was envisaged with a focus on the thematic priorities of; fiscal responsibility, organisational improvement, citizen focus, capacity building and information systems. The SPU was created to distil best practice and also to work closely with departments in implementing the reforms. The District was acutely aware that progress would not be possible without placing citizens at the very core of its reform process.

The resources to help it move towards its vision became available through the DFID supported Strengthening Decentralised Local Government in Faisalabad Project (SDLGF).

The Project, reflecting the priorities of DFID's 2006 white paper, supported the district's reform across the board, with a view to building capability, and enhancing accountability and responsiveness.

Building the capacity of the District was not in itself sufficient; all three pillars were needed to make the District more authoritative, legitimate and effective in tackling poverty and improving the lives of its citizens. The Project is intended to help the District become an 'efficient, effective, accountable, and transparent District Government, which is responsive to the needs of people, including the poor'.

Introducing transparency, and a citizen-focused approach in departments more used to official secrecy and a system of patronage has not been easy. Developing mutually supportive relationships with elected representatives has also been a challenge. With a multitude of vested interests at stake, the reform had detractors as well as supporters.

Moreover, while new roles and responsibilities had been instituted, the devolution plan was rolled out rapidly, and these were not always matched with resources and capacities. Despite this, the citizen engagement agenda has remained central to the District's reform efforts at all stages. The following section describes how the District developed and nurtured the relationship with its citizens.

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The Case

THE CASE Strategic Overview Faisalabad had envisaged a reform process underpinned by citizen focus. To ensure a more effective, efficient, accountable and transparent Local Government, guiding principles for change were identified as part of its Corporate Plan. A range of proposed interventions supported internal or horizontal mechanisms for accountability and related to performance, particularly financial probity (e.g. improved audit processes, oversight of contracting procedures, strengthened budgetary processes, performance-based systems, improved monitoring etc).

Importantly, these guiding principles also provided the basis for potential activities which were expected to contribute to participative local governance and enhanced social accountability. These guiding principles formed the basis of a series of Strategic Operational Plans (SOPs) for various critical service sector, covering the period 2004-2009. Each SOP was approved by the District Council, and this was an important step in providing legitimacy and ownership. This included an SOP for the Community Development (CD) Department, which provided an institutional home for a number of initiatives related to citizen engagement and social accountability. However, given the cross-cutting nature of the agenda, each SOP incorporated these principles, and all departments were involved in working towards the broad goal of more transparent, accountable and responsive governance.

Faisalabad's guiding principles for change permeated its strategies and action plans and translated into a range of concrete initiatives directed at engaging with citizens in different ways. Table 1 highlights some of the initiatives which the District had identified in the initial stages of its reform process. It is notable that the move towards greater social accountability was strongly supported by a clear commitment to a more open and transparent Government.

Faisalabad's citizen engagement strategies were further enabled by the effective use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) within the framework of a structured communications strategy. With its commitment to a pro-poor, inclusive and rights-based approach to development enshrined in its corporate vision and strategies, the District was well-poised to leverage the new institutional space provided by the devolution process, to achieve its goals.

We have always had public dealing in Local Government. However, the SOPs gave us a new opportunity. They were developed through a consultative process, and gave us a firm basis for involving the people in a more structured way in our processes. We were able to use them as a foundation for our dialogue with elected representatives, as we had a solid framework and plan to adhere to which did not allow private interests to

DCO chairing a monthly meeting with the DCC of NGOs

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The Case Table 1:

CDGF guiding principles for change and potential citizen engagement initiatives

Strategic

Ensuring consistency between vision, mission statement, goals and objectives Five year plan for poverty reduction

Inclusiveness

Services are delivered in a fair and equitable manner Socio-economic profiling Needs assessment Participatory planning and decision-making systems Pro-poor and pro-woman policies and budgets Pro-poor and pro-woman service standards and targets Gender sensitive recruitment and promotion policies and targets Disaggregated monitoring

Integrity

All transactions are undertaken in an honest and ethical manner Community supervision and monitoring of schemes Sanctions against discrimination or violation of rights

Ethical

Promoting equitable, fair and honest practices Stakeholder participation Transparent, consultative and participatory processes and systems Participatory planning systems Consultative decision-making processes Redesign of published budget document Use of television and radio for information and consultation Improved public accessibility to staff and information through: *Publication of policies, plans, standards and resources *Public notice boards, site notice boards, leaflets

Openness

Efficiency Effective

Consensual

Participative

Promoting best use of resources, including finances, people, time and physical attributes Public-private partnerships Service delivery outputs and outcomes meet agreed policy objectives Performance budgeting Service partnerships established Community contracts Performance monitoring (quality of service) Strengthening representative decision-making processes and mediation of differing interests Participative planning process District monitoring committees functional Participatory budgeting Citizens' surveys Developing mechanisms for civic engagement and inclusive decision-making Participatory planning process Community contracting Community monitoring of construction and O&M Citizens' surveys Participatory budgeting CCB capacity building

Responsiveness Service delivery is consistent with citizen demands Customer surveys Customer feedback mechanisms Public assistance booths Service planning and targeting

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Accountable

Departments and individuals can be held to account for service results or standards Publication of service standards and performance Formulation of Citizens Charter Streamlined complaints procedures

Transparent

Enhancing clarity of procedures, systems and decisions Budget publication Streamlined accounts Linking District MIS with citizens' complaint and information service centre e-Government Participatory planning Information and communication strategy

The Design and Implementation

THE DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION The Design The CDGF decided to approach its agenda for achieving rights-based pro-poor reform through participatory local governance with a multi-pronged approach. Clearly, a focus on strengthening the 'demand' side of the equation would be futile if the capacity of the district to respond was limited. Further, there were multiple national capacity-building initiatives on strengthening both internal and external mechanisms for participation and accountability that had been put in place to support the devolution plan. It was important to tap into these resources and avoid duplication of effort.

Training of Union Council members

The citizen engagement programme that emerged over the course of the reforms programme encompassed strengthening instruments for 'voice', accountability and responsiveness, as well as building the capacities of Government departments, elected representatives, civil society organisations and citizens to participate effectively and respond to the new opportunities and challenges.

The SOPs had identified an agenda around:

Better targeted planning on the basis of sound information and participatory processes. Socio-economic profiling was to form the basis of targeting the poor.

Capacity building of CCBs and elected representatives was also included to ensure participatory processes at the local level. A CCB and NGO Management Information system (MIS) was to be developed to aid decision-making. Budgetary allocations were to become increasingly pro-poor; Stream-lining of key processes, in particular those around CCB projects which were proving to be a critical bottleneck. The CCBs formalised the citizen's role as partners in local economic development, and were a key mechanism for encouraging participatory governance and providing a forum for citizens to exercise 'voice' and 'client power'. An innovative CCB help-desk and one-window operation for processing was envisaged, supported by the CCB MIS; As part of the efforts to ensure a socially inclusive district and a commitment to rights based approaches, there was to be a specific focus on gender issues and reaching out to marginal groups; To strengthen accountability and transparency, communication strategies were to be developed and monitoring and evaluation strengthened. Inter-departmental coordination was also to be improved.

This agenda was later expanded with an accelerated focus on deepening and strengthening demand-side mechanisms and ensuring the responsiveness of the District. A number of innovative measures were introduced, building on existing processes and forums as well as introducing new ones. This included:

Strengthening citizen voice through building the capacities of the NGO forum and District Coordination Council (DCC) of NGOs, in understanding their roles as advocacy and lobbying organisations; Introducing participation in the budgeting process as required by the LGO, and as a key tool for enhancing social accountability;

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The Design and Implementation

Ensuring responsiveness and channelling voice through citizen surveys, notably the District-wide Citizen Perception Survey; Improving mechanisms for client power and accountability and making the District more accessible to citizens through introducing a customers call centre; Introducing public-private partnerships and alternate service delivery models e.g. in the education sector, and in the delivery of health services.

These initiatives have been led in many instances by the Community Development department, but other departments have also played a leading role for some initiatives (e.g. the DCO's offices for information and transparency, Finance and Planning for the participatory budgeting initiative and the Citizen Perception Survey, and the Education & Health departments in public-private partnerships and alternate service delivery models).

Opening of CCB Help Desk (2005)

Figure 2 summarises some of the supply and demand side instruments employed by Faisalabad to ensure improvements in governance and service delivery. Some of these initiatives are discussed in further detail in the following section.

Figure 2:

Instruments used for promoting citizen engagement in District Faisalabad

Horizontal Accountability (supply side instruments) CCB help desk Customer call centre Support to monitoring committees Public-private partnerships Improved budgeting and audit processes (including prebudget consultations) Better financial and management information Local council approval of all plans Performance based budgeting Performance management

Responsive, Effective, Efficient, Accountable and Transparent City District Government Greater local control over development planning and decision-making Balanced political, financial and administrative accountability

Participative governance and Social Accountability (demand side instruments) Citizen access to information CDGF website Newsletters Street theatre Radio programmes Budget consultations Citizen feedback on servicesPerception Survey Participatory planning CCB and elected representatives capacity building Voice mechanisms NGO Forum DCC CCB Networks

Implementation Transparency and Public Information

Workshop on Gender Audit with education department

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One of the critical areas where the CDGF made changes was in ensuring that it was transparent and open with information, and communicated messages at the appropriate level. Information that was hitherto guarded closely was made available in the public domain.

This not only served to broaden the constituency for the reform by encouraging ownership across different groups, but was also critical for enabling the process of social accountability.

There were several tools used for communication and sharing information to build greater awareness of the CDGF's mandate and initiatives.

The Design and Implementation Development of CDGF Website Prior to the reform process, the District Government website contained little information of public utility or interest. That website contained basic information about the different departments, their structure and contact details, and details of union councils and district council members. Information on how to redress grievances, and how the decisions affecting citizens' lives were being made, was absent. In particular, there was no information on budgets and expenditures. Maintained by the IT department which had severe capacity constraints, the website was a rudimentary tool and did not lend itself to use by citizens.

Sharing information with citizens through website (www.faisalabad.gov.pk)

An early decision by senior management was to upgrade the website and use it as a conduit for sharing information with the public. The website was revamped, and all key information related to the district's decision making processes was made available. Technical support, through the DFID project, enabled this process. Importantly, the website now contains all policies, strategic plans, survey findings and research documents, as well as biannual performance reports published by the CDGF, executive summaries in most of which are available both in Urdu and English languages.

Additionally, to assist the public, key documents related to the LGO, and training materials developed for the reform process, are also available (e.g. CCB rules and training manuals).

The website has been an important tool in bringing information out into the public domain, and sharing it with key stakeholders. Currently the Budget of the District, monthly expenditures and financial statements are available for the public to view, making Faisalabad the first district to exhibit such transparency with financial information.

Newsletters As a means of both internal and external communication, newsletters, in both English and Urdu were used to communicate progress on the reform initiatives against stated goals and other key initiatives being undertaken by the CDGF. The audience included not only the departments, but also elected representatives and interested parties including NGOs, the media, other districts and donors. The newsletter was a low-cost initiative and well received by its audience, as they give a succinct overview of progress in lay-persons terms. To date 20 newsletters have been published in Urdu and 40 in English and these have been emailed or mailed to an audience of over 600.

Street Theatre A particularly innovative initiative was the use of street theatre to inform citizens about their roles and responsibilities in the new system of governance. Targeted at deprived areas, slums and katchi abadis in the District, where literacy levels were traditionally low, this was a tool that generated considerable interest.

Sharing the reforms initiatives through CDGF’s monthly newsletter in English and Urdu

The programme was developed and delivered in collaboration with a local production company, 'The Hope', and the activity was closely coordinated with the District Officer Coordination (DOC). As of March 2008, about 30 programmes had been conducted across all eight towns of the District, with over 35,000 participants. The response in rural areas was particularly positive, and the theatre programme helped ordinary and marginalised citizens engage in a manner that would not have been possible with more formal tools for information

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The Design and Implementation sharing and feedback. As an interactive tool, it elicited a more encouraging response than the traditional modes of communication (through television, radio or press releases).

Radio programmes

UC Nazim discussing CDGF’s reforms initiatives in a radio programme

I am supportive of strengthening civil society and community based organisations. These forums are necessary to create demand through lobbying and advocacy for improving service delivery. Both these forums have been instrumental in improving and strengthening the CCBs Help Desk and CCB work in the District. The DCC of NGOs has also worked for improving services.

EDO, Community Development, CDGF

Of the electronic media, despite the popularity and growing penetration of television, radio still has a wide audience, especially in rural areas. A number of radio programmes were developed to communicate messages on various aspects of the reform, and the CDGF's initiatives. These included 17 programmes under the banner, 'Makami hukoomat ki baat, awaam ke sath' (Local Government discussed with the public).

A local NGO was used to develop the format for and deliver these programmes, with guests including elected representatives, NGOs, CCBs, and citizens. The subject matter has covered areas such as the role of elected representatives in the new system, capacity building initiatives being undertaken, and new public-private partnerships in the delivery of education services. Additionally, media releases, press conferences, and local coverage of CDGF events, also enhanced the level of information available to the public.

Detail of different communication tools that have been used in CDGF is available in another separate case study.

Enhancing Voice Mechanisms Strengthening of District Coordination Council (DCC) of NGOs The Community Development department had met with limited success in forging partnerships with local and provincial civil society organisations at the start of the reform process. It was hoped that such partnerships would strengthen internal capacity and improve community outreach, particularly given the Department's limited resources. A number of local organisations had expressed the desire to formalise the relationship with the Department, with a view to greater cooperation and developing a deeper understanding of issues around CCBs and the community driven development agenda for the District.

Based on a series of meetings between the Department and local NGOs, it was decided that reviving an existing mechanism, the District Coordination Council (DCC), would be preferable to create a new and parallel structure. The DCC had already been formed, de jure, by a Provincial Directive to Social Welfare Department from the Directorate General of Social Welfare, Women Development and Bait-ul-Maal in January 2002.

The DCC is mandated to be a coordinating body, to facilitate experience-sharing and capacity building of its constituent members, as well as strengthen the links between its members and Governmental and other agencies. While the DCC was constituted to enhance cooperation with Government, the District, recognising the need for developing demand-side mechanisms, chose to upgrade and enhance its capacity as a channel for citizen voice. The departmental team with its technical specialists worked with the DCC to introduce professionalism in its activities, including ensuring the regularity and 'minuting' of meetings by the Social Welfare department.

Workshop for training need assessment of DCC of NGOs

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Secondly, to build on the opportunities afforded by devolution, liaison with other organisations, projects and programmes working in the District such as the National Urban Poverty Alleviation programme (NUPAP) UNDP, Citizen Police Liaison Committee (CPLC),

The Design and Implementation Khushali Bank, Trust for Voluntary Organisations (TVO) etc was developed, to share experiences and resources. Third, the DCC received specific targeted training on “Enhancing Citizen Voice, Strengthening Local Accountability and Increasing Participation in Local Governance�, to strengthen its role in these areas.

To further develop its role, the District regularly draws on the DCC in processes of consultation and information-sharing, for example, in the pre-budget consultations introduced in the previous financial year.

Similarly the District Government have also shared the findings of the Citizen Perception Survey with the DCC, with a view to providing the relevant information for enabling their lobbying and advocacy roles with service providers ('client power'). Reflecting on the negative citizen feedback on the state of services in the District, the DCC provided their thoughts and suggestions in relation to their role, and actions the District should take. The sharing of financial information and perception survey findings is part of District Government's commitment to be more open and responsive to its citizens.

Members of DCC during a work exercise in the training workshop on enhancing citizen voice and advocacy

In the past, most NGOs have limited themselves by just providing direct services to the community particularly in the health and education sectors. This was mainly due to lack of capacity and awareness on lobbying and advocacy.

After support from the District Government, we came to understand how NGOs can also play an effective role in improving service delivery and influencing decision making by the Local Governments. We now know how NGOs can strengthen the Local Government system. We participated in the pre-budget consultation workshops organised by the District Government, and we are proud that our suggestions have been incorporated in the final budget. The District Government has also shared with us the findings of the Perception Survey and we are now focusing on neglected areas. We are also playing our role in creating awareness on CCBs as well as in capacity development of the CCBs. DCC of NGOs

Citizen Community Boards Networks Another CDGF initiative for enhancing citizen voice and accountability was the formation of a CCB network at the District and town levels. The role of the CCB network was to lobby the relevant tier of Government, for resolving CCB related issues and expediting processes for approvals. The network was formed in collaboration with a national NGO, and the CD department provided office space to the District level network, within its offices. The networks at district and town levels have been trained in CCB rules, participatory planning and the Local Government monitoring system, to enable them to carry out their role. Information is shared between the networks and the Department, particularly that related to the CCB Help Desk, and representatives of the district network are invited to fortnightly meetings of the CCB Help Desk. The CCB network participated actively in the pre-budget consultations held by the District in FY 06-07 and also FY 07-08. It also participated in the consultations regarding the findings of the Citizen Perception Survey.

City District Nazim Faisalabad administering oath from CCB Network

Citizen Feedback- the Perception Survey Soliciting citizen feedback on the performance of public services enhances citizen voice and 'client power' and can strengthen both the long and short accountability routes described earlier. With the full support of the both, the political and executive arms of the District, a district-wide Perception Survey was carried out to assess citizen's views on select services.

All 289 union councils were covered, making it an unprecedented exercise (previous efforts had not been carried out at the sub-district level).

CCB Network taking oath

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The Design and Implementation The views of men, women and elected representatives were gauged on education, health, water supply and sanitation services, as well as on the mechanisms for participation, accountability and redressal of grievances provided in the new Local Governments. The methodology and detailed findings can be found in the perception survey report available on the CDGF's website (www.faisalabad.gov.pk). In total, 21,929 people were surveyed. The average number of people surveyed in one Union Council was 76, including 34 men, 31 women and 9 elected representatives.

Perception Survey meeting with female community members

We believe in openness and transparency, and so we have started pre-budget consultation with key stakeholders such as CCBs, DCC of NGOs, elected representatives and other associations. These prebudget consultations have been very useful in the sense that we came to know the issues and priorities from the grass root level. The priorities raised by different stakeholders are now incorporated in the final budget document. The prebudget consultation has also been helpful in restoring the trust and confidence of citizens of the District in the City District Government Faisalabad.

EDO Finance and Planning

The findings of the survey were, however, bleak, and reflected structural weaknesses in the delivery of all key services. According to the perception of people, neither the quantum, nor the quality of services required was being delivered. Moreover, providers were unresponsive to the needs of citizens. The newly instituted mechanisms for accountability and redressal of grievances were found not to be working, and most citizens turned to local politicians to address their needs. Participatory mechanisms were not well understood, despite the formation of record numbers of CCBs in the District. There were some glimmers of hope, however, particularly where innovation had been introduced and partnerships were being built for service delivery (the alternate service delivery model in the rural health sector appeared to be working more effectively than conventional department led delivery of services).

What was important about this exercise was that the CDGF chose not to suppress the findings, but put them in the public realm. Findings were shared with departments who were asked to develop action plans in response to the issues citizens highlighted. Consultations were held with NGOs and a limited number of elected representatives. Interestingly these were held in tandem with the pre-budget consultations, allowing participants to reflect on current allocations and gaps.

The Citizen Perception Survey was the culmination of several years of commitment and initiatives to turn the CDGF into a fully citizen-focused Government. The consonance in the visions of the elected and executive arms of the District allowed highly sensitive findings to be made publicly available. Both Nazim and DCO were committed to a vision of a poverty free district, where quality services were available to all citizens.

The Survey served as an accountability tool, and also helped policy makers to determine where investments were to be allocated. This responsiveness to the findings of the survey was also critical. In both the education and health sectors, the Survey has helped focus decision-makers on areas where allocations have been inadequate. With the findings helping to shape decisions, there is evidence that there will be demand to repeat the survey in some years.

Budget Consultations- Towards Participatory Budgeting The Local Government Ordinance encourages a participatory budgeting process with stakeholder consultations. The first step in the budget cycle according to rule 11 of the Budget Rules 2003 is: “The Budget Call Letter shall be finalized after consultation with the relevant stakeholders.

The "stakeholders" include Councils, elected representatives, general public, women's organization, private sector, Citizen Community Boards, Non-Governmental Organisations, Community Based Organisations, and other organisations.�

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The Design and Implementation However, during the initial stages of the reform process, these consultations were not taking place. With an increasing focus on participatory processes, and enhancing demand side mechanisms, by the time of the 2006-07 budget cycle the District was ready to open up its budgeting process. Extensive consultations were held with NGOs, CCB networks and other key stakeholders, with some rudimentary training provided on understanding the budgetary process. The feedback received was synthesized and shared with the political arm. It indicated that social sector investments were felt to be inadequate and stakeholders were strongly advocating for increased allocations. Education and health were areas of primary concern. Some of these concerns were addressed in the budget, with the new fiscal space resulting from prudent financial management and streamlining of processes and systems, allowing pro-poor allocations to be increased.

Training on Gender Responsive Budgeting for District Council members

Training was also provided to elected representatives in understanding the budgetary process and in gender responsive budgeting. As of Financial Year 2006-2007, departments and politicians were also informed that their budgets needed to be more gender responsive.

While the process still has a considerable way to go before becoming a fully participatory budgeting process, these initial consultations, and the new transparency in financial information, paves the way for deeper modes of engagement with citizens around critical budgetary processes.

Customer Call Centre As a part of promoting responsiveness and strengthening internal accountability mechanisms, the CDGF established a Call Centre in the DCO office. The Call Centre is an integral part of the implementation of the District Government's corporate plan. The main objective of the initiative is to improve service delivery and to ensure that CDGF departments are accountable to the people of Faisalabad. It also enhances 'client power', giving citizens and clients of services a mechanism for directly voicing complaints and concerns. While complaints cells had initially been envisaged in the corporate plan, the idea was further developed during an exchange visit by the CDGF senior management to a similar call centre in the U.K. The call centre was inaugurated in 2007, and provides a toll free facility for citizens to call in and voice complaints about service delivery at all tiers of Government in the District.

The City District Government has taken a number of initiatives to involve citizens in different activities to restore their confidence in the City District Government. The most notable and innovative step which CDGF has taken is the establishment of a Customer Call centre where the citizens of Faisalabad can call through a toll free number to register their complaints and problems. I believe that the establishment of a Call Centre is a critical contributor to Confidence Building Measures between the citizens of Faisalabad and the City District Government. We are certain that it will help us in being more accountable and responsive to our citizens.

CDGF’s Customer Call Centre

DCO, City District Faisalabad

Information about the facility was disseminated using both the print and electronic media, through local cable networks and local newspapers. The CDGF also published posters containing information about the call centre, which have been posted in all departments and public places in the District. The Call Centre is one of the first to operate fully at the District Government level in the country and cover all services. While it is too early to determine how effective it will be in meeting its objectives, the initiative has instilled new public confidence in the will of the CDGF to hold itself accountable.

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The Design and Implementation Development of CCB Help Desk With a continuous focus on calibrating its system and processes according to the needs and requirements of the citizen of the District, the CDGF has always been ready to innovate. The CCB Help Desk (previously known as the CCB one-window unit) is one such innovative institutional arrangement which was introduced within the community development department in 2004. The District was the first to establish a CCB Help Desk and the model is now being replicated in other districts such as Lahore.

DCO inaugurating a CCB project for special children (2005)

The CCB help desk was established to improve the coordination and working relationships between the sectoral offices to facilitate the work of CCBs in the District. The process was not working well. Each department had to review and clear projects related to its work, but interdepartmental coordination has always been an issue. As a result, the approval process took months, and was a barrier to local development initiatives, and discouraged community participation. Initiated in response to citizen complaints and the sluggish progress in disbursing CCB funds, the City District Nazim and DCO spearheaded the initiative.

The CCB Help Desk is headed by the EDO CD. The Deputy District Officer (DDO) Social Welfare is the nominated focal person for the CCBs Help Desk and the representatives of the sectoral offices (education, health, roads, building, agriculture, finance & planning) are members. The EDO CD holds a fortnightly meeting of the Help Desk to review progress and discuss issues pertaining to projects submitted by CCBs. As a result of this institutional arrangement, the project processing time has been reduced to 45 days from several months.

As of January 2008, the District Government has released Rs. 178 Million against 130 CCB projects.

Alternative Approaches to Service Delivery One way in which the CDGF has attempted to improve governance and the quality of its services is by looking towards different models of service delivery. By bringing in different sets of actors and developing new partnerships between citizens, the Government and other stakeholders, the CDGF has hoped that the new dynamics and accountabilities would lead to much needed improvements in quality and outcomes. One such partnership is seen in the rural health sector, where a management contract with an NGO has resulted in improvements in service delivery and higher levels of citizen satisfaction. Two important initiatives in the education sector are described here; the Whole School Development (WSD) model being tested in the District, and the Public Private Partnerships which have injected new life to the sector, and demonstrate how multiple partnerships can result in better accountability and improved service delivery.

Whole School Development (WSD) The WSD programme is essentially a school based training programme for head teachers and teachers with the aim of improving the quality of education in the school. It has a holistic basis that seeks to integrate community involvement in education, improved head teacher management and a quality improvement programme through teacher training. Working in primary and elementary schools, the model depends on a locally based commitment of head teacher, community, teachers and students to improve education in their school.

Activity based learning under WSD model

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The Design and Implementation What is innovative about the model is that the community, parents and school councils are involved in determining their needs, prioritisation and preparing a School Development Plan in order to achieve a minimal level of educational provision (teachers, building and resources) that will allow quality improvement to take place. A team of trained teachers undertook community mobilisation with a large number of mothers meetings at village level as well as interaction with union council officials and village members.

Qualitative evidence indicates that the new approach and engaging with the community has resulted in improvements. Parents are more involved in the working of the school and the School Council, previously often non-functional, has become an effective platform for engaging. Communities are contributing financially and in other ways, and the relationship between parents and teachers have improved, leading to improvements in teacher motivation. Parents are engaed in their children's education, and with new modes of pedagogy, both children and teachers are enjoying the learning process. These changes have only recently been put in place (it took time before training was complete and new materials introduced), but there is evidence that the model may help the District improve critical educational outcomes.

Public Private Partnerships In attempting to bring new efficiencies to the public sector, Governments have hoped that the management skills and financial acumen of the business community will create better value for money for the tax payer. Additionally, strong business models have in-built systems of accountability to shareholders. PPPs are being increasingly used in the social sector in Pakistan, and with high levels of private sector involvement in the education sector, the Government has hoped that such partnerships will add a new, better-regulated dimension to provision, and help in achieving its commitment to the MDGs and Universal Primary Education. Faisalabad is the first district to provide legal cover and a strategic framework to PPP, with its strategy being approved by the District Council in 2004, and a PPP cell being established in the Department of Education in 2006. Learning from the initiative has been absorbed at the provincial level.

The PPP model is embedded in WSD and all partnered schools are supported by the WSD model. As a result support is forthcoming in preparing school development plan and School Councils along with other stakeholders can help monitor improvements against agreed indicators. The District has partnered with over a 100 schools across two programmes; 'Adopt a School' (AAS) and 'School Upgradation through Community Public Partnerships' (CPP).

The AAS model is more home-grown with 52 schools and 21 partners in a grant support partnership. CPP, like the school improvement programmes run by the rural support partners i.e. NRSP, PRSP, NCHD, with over 1000 schools, is provincially driven with district based arrangements.

Construction of class rooms under PPP

Evidence indicates that there has indeed been a change in relationships since Faisalabad embarked on these initiatives. The state of lack of confidence mistrust between the Government and the private sector has, to some extent, been mitigated. The department is now engaging in dialogue with communities and the private sector, and a new openness is apparent. At the school level, changes are visible. Student enrolment has increased and teacher-student ratios have improved, as have school facilities.

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Impacts

IMPACTS There are known challenges to determining impacts in the area of voice, empowerment and accountability, as the causal chain is often non-linear. Yet, there are intermediary outcomes and anecdotal evidence to suggest that the CDGF's array of initiatives to engage with its citizens is changing cultures and relationships.

The significant change has been that the CDGF has demonstrated a clear commitment to and taken concrete steps towards being more transparent, accountable and effective. The changes in institutional cultures and mindset being leveraged through this commitment are a significant outcome of the reform process and the citizen engagement agenda.

A Transparent Government and Better Informed Citizens Participation of elected representatives in street theatre programme

The number of visitors to the CDGF website has steadily increased, reaching 30,000 in March 2008. While the hits have not been analysed and many people outside the District are also likely accessing information, this would indicate that citizens of Faisalabad are also increasingly aware of the information available, and are using the website to inform themselves about the workings of their Government; An impact of the street theatre programme is that communities have a higher level of awareness and an immediate opportunity to question their elected representatives on issues, when they are present at the programme, and to receive responses on the spot; Observations indicate that the street theatre programmes have instigated a process of questioning and encouraged a culture of 'speaking up' amongst marginal groups who have traditionally had little opportunity to express their views. The content of the programmes have been discussed by participants, and the awareness and dialogue that has resulted is an important step in citizens becoming aware of their rights and responsibilities. Many participants expressly requested that their views be forwarded to decision-makers, seizing on the opportunity to express their views and concerns.

For many, these programmes were the first opportunity to reflect on issues, debate them and understand the complexities involved.

Enhanced Voice, Client Power and Responsiveness

As a result of findings of the feedback through the Citizen Perception Survey, and based on further analysis, the CDGF in 2008 has taken the following steps: Ø

Ø

A female community gathering for Citizen Perception Survey

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Ø

Almost 90% of the allocation of 55 Million rupees from the Punjab Devolved Social Services programme (PDSSP) for investing in infrastructure in health service outlets has been allocated in areas where people were most concerned about health infrastructure; The NGO managing rural health outlets has also taken concrete actions to address concerns voiced by citizens e.g. the appointment of more doctors especially females, improvement in the availability of medicines, regularity in the availability of the doctors etc.; Of the money available from the Punjab Education Sector Reform programme (PESRP) Rs. 104 Million have been provided to the National Logistics Cell (responsible for infrastructure) to invest in the schools where people identified the greatest need for infrastructure improvements;

Impacts Ø

Ø

The Perception Survey confirmed that mechanisms for redressal of grievances were not working and few people knew where to complain or received a response to complaints. The 'Customer Call Centre' has been established as a response to these on-going concerns; The fact that oversight bodies such as Monitoring Committees were not functional, and participatory mechanisms not well understood, was also confirmed by the Survey. The CDGF has initiated a comprehensive training programme for all elected representatives of the Union Councils on monitoring committees and CCBs;

The Citizen Call Centre has been receiving, on average, 300 calls a day. A forum of 'focal persons' from all relevant departments meet regularly to discuss progress on the issues raised through contacting the call centre; The Call Centre has been linked to internal accountability mechanisms to ensure responsiveness- the EDOs meet weekly with the DCO to discuss issues and performance, and are expected to report on progress in addressing issues raised by citizens in their calls to the CDGF's Call Centre; As a result of improved liaison with the departments and other organisations and projects, the DCC of NGOs has undertaken a number of development projects in the fields of health, education and water & sanitation; The DCC of NGOs with its enhanced capacity has been able to participate in a number of areas where it was previously inactive. It has been working with CCBs to build awareness and capacity. One member NGOs has also worked on strengthening the Insaaf Committee and Musalhait-e-Anjuman (justice and dispute resolution mechanisms) in selected union councils of the District. All 32 members of DCC have also registered CCBs and submitted projects which are at different stages for approval and funding. These members have also influenced the union councils Nazims and have ensured the constitution of different union council committees such as monitoring committees, Insaaf Committees and Musalhait-e-Anjum committees in their respective union councils.

Training of DCC

A More Efficient and Effective Local Government

The CCB Help Desk is serving as one-stop-shop for communities and CCBs who previously had to spend days waiting for different departments to process their projects, not to mention the effort of trying to reach officials in different departments.

The Help Desk has been instrumental in fast tracking the approval and funding of CCB projects. The time frame for the approval of funding for CCB projects has been reduced from several months to a mere 45 days. It is supported in this by the CCB Management Information System (MIS), which has made information easily accessible to the departments. The Help Desk serves as an internal accountability mechanism, driving departments to respond to CCBs and itself being monitored by the corporate team; The profiles of 90 schools have been prepared by the PPP cell. Of these, 21 have been completely partnered through MOUs and 17 wait the signing of MoUs. Thus 38 schools are spoken for the 3-5 year partnerships with a majority being girl's schools.

Enrollment has risen, teacher-student ratios have improved and infrastructure also improved in partnered schools. The WSD model has ensured that teachers are Meeting between PPP Cell and donor

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Implementation Before

motivated, communities and parents are involved with their local schools, and the school environment and quality of teaching has improved. While learning outcomes as yet are unclear, this provides a sound basis for improving the quality of education in the District.

So, how participative a Local Government has Faisalabad become and how true has it been to the guiding principles articulated in its Corporate Plan at the start of the reform process? In public engagement with citizens there are a spectrum of modalities, ranging from mere sharing of information, a one-way process, to truly empowering citizens by placing final decision-making authority in their hands and supporting them in their independent activities.

After

Table 2 summarizes the initiatives that Faisalabad has taken along this 'participation ladder'.

Faisalabad has been able to work at all points along the spectrum, and while many activities still relate to information sharing and consultation, these in themselves signify a sea change in the way Local Governments have previously conducted business in Pakistan. It is significant that the foundations for moving towards real empowerment have been laid, and the challenge for the District is to remain true to its vision and continue to move itself along the spectrum.

Table 2:

City District Government Faisalabad and Citizen Engagement

Information Sharing

CCB identified project; lining of water course

22

Street Theatre: The communities particularly residing in slums and katchi abadis of the District are being informed about the reform programme and the new Local Government system through street theatre programmes conducted by the City District Government Faisalabad. Around 30,000 community members have been contacted during 29 street theatre programmes conducted by the City District Government Faisalabad; Newspaper Articles: The articles on reforms and Local Government system have been published in Urdu language in local newspapers to aware communities on the reform initiatives and on their roles and responsibilities in strengthening Local Government system; Radio programmes: Radio is another medium being used by the CDGF to educate communities about their role in the Local Government system. Around 17 radio programmes have been held in Urdu language on different Local Government issues and the reform programme of district Faisalabad; Newsletters: The CDGF is also sharing reform initiatives with the different stakeholders such as development professionals, Government staff, elected representatives and NGOs through newsletters published in both English and Urdu languages. These newsletters are posted on the website and also sent to different stakeholders through emails. Around 19 Newsletters in Urdu and 36 Newsletters in English have been published; CDGF Website: A website www.faisalabad.gov.pk has been developed to share information with the various stakeholders particularly with the citizen and communities of District Faisalabad. All reforms related documents and District Budget, District Financial Reports and other documents and reports have been placed on the website for public view and review. Additionally, District establishment details including sanctioned, filled and vacant post details available on website; Leaflets on Reforms; Around 30,000 leaflets on reforms have been distributed among the communities living in slums and katchi abadis of District Faisalabad.

These leaflets were distributed to inform communities about the CDGF's Vision, Mission, Dimension of Good Governance and Principles of Good Governance; Departmental Strategic Operational Plan and Performance Report: To keep elected representatives, one of our key stakeholders informed about the reforms initiatives, the Urdu translation of executive summaries of Departmental Strategic Operational Plan and the Performance Report have been presented in the district council for discussion and approval;

Implementation Consultation

Deciding together

Acting together

Supporting independent community interests

Establishment of Call Centre: The CDGF has established a call centre for the redressal of complaints of its citizen regarding service delivery; Citizen Perception Survey: The CDGF has conducted a comprehensive survey in 289 union councils of the District to have feedback of its communities on the services delivered by the Local Governments. About 22,000 community members were consulted during this survey; Household Survey in the selected UCs: The CDGF has also completed household survey in eight UCs to assess the poverty, health and literacy levels for better planning on these aspects in the future; Sharing of Citizen Perception Survey with different Stakeholders: The CDGF has shared the findings of Citizen Perception Survey with the DCC of NGOs, CCBs networks, elected representatives, the CDGF departments, MPAs and MNAs to have their feedback and suggestions for improving service delivery; Sharing of GIS information: Around 1,500 community members and elected representatives of 176 union councils have been consulted for preparing GIS; Issuance of Budget Call Letter: Budget Call letter issued to all the departments, elected representatives and civil society groups (NGOs, CCBs and business forums); Pre-Budget Consultation with Different Stakeholders: Sharing of financial information and Pre-budget consultation with the DCC of NGOs, CCBs Networks and the departments to have their voice in the CDGF's budget; The CCB help desk within community development department operational; Participation of CCBs Networks in CCBs Help Desk activities ; Consultation on Employee Motivation Survey with Employees Associations: The HR department of CDGF has consulted with the Employee's Associations on Employee Motivation Survey; The community development department has involved CCBs Network in CCBs Help desk activities and has taken decision to support the CCBs work. The community development department has also provided office space to the CCBs network within the CCBs Help Desk; The reactivation and strengthening of DCC of NGOs has enabled the DCC of NGOs and the department to work in collaborative way; As part of Whole School Development (WSD), the communities, parents, elected representatives are consulted for preparing school development plans; The CDGF is proving full support to promote and strengthen CCBs work in the District. The CDGF has provided around 175 Million Rupees against 129 projects; The CDGF has established a Public Private Unit in the education department to improve conditions of Government schools through Public Private Partnership (PPP). As a result, profiles of 85 schools have been finalised for PPP. The industrialists have provided 12.90 Million rupees for providing missing facilities in 29 Government schools of District Faisalabad; As a part of the Whole School Development, the Schools Councils have been strengthened and working to improve missing facilities in the school by contributing 10 percent of the total cost of the project. The school councils have provided missing facilities in 99 schools of District Government Faisalabad. The total cost of 99 projects is around 20.499 Million Rupees and school councils have contributed 2.40 Million Rupees; The DCC of NGOs has been trained on “Enhancing Citizen Voice, Strengthening Citizen Voice and Increasing Participation on Local Governance”; Information sharing through training programmes: Training on “Participatory Planning, CCBs and Local Government System” has been imparted to 3,068 elected representatives; Training of 419 City District Council members on Planning and Gender Responsive Budgeting and on “Poverty, Gender & Governance”; would enable the elected representatives to plan strategically to address the needs of women and the poor in the District; Training Manuals in Urdu Language: Most of the training manuals of various sectors have been prepared and published in Urdu language which are more comprehendible by the target trainees and other stakeholders; Delivery of trainings in Urdu and Punjabi Languages: All the trainings have been imparted using trilingual approach i.e. English, Urdu and Punjabi.

23

Opportunities and Challenges

OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES Opportunities Clear and High Level Political Commitment and Ownership The reform process and the citizen engagement agenda had clear commitment and support from the highest level, both amongst the political and the executive arms of the District Government. This gave it the impetus it needed, and further the City District Nazim and DCO who were at the helm, sustained this commitment through the course of the reform. It is important that there was coherence of vision between the political and administrative heads of the District, which enabled real change.

Motivated by the intrinsic value of Government for the people, by the people, of the people', the leadership consciously chose to place citizens centre stage. They were further driven by Pakistan's international commitments and Faisalabad's commitments to the MDGs and poverty reduction. The leadership were further motivated when study tours to more developed countries demonstrated to them the clear advantages of citizen engagement. With clear 'champions' at the highest level, the citizen focus agenda was protected from its detractors and could be nurtured and developed.

Safeguarding by Encapsulating Clear Principles in Policy Frameworks The commitments to participative governance and citizen engagement were clearly articulated and enshrined in the CDGF's policy framework and strategic plans at the start of the reform process. Further legitimacy was gained by having these policies and plans endorsed by the District Council. These policies and plans framed the initiatives undertaken over the following years.

Building on the Legal Mandate The LGO provided a legal mandate for engaging with citizens and created new forums for doing so. Participatory mechanisms (CCBs), oversight and dispute resolution mechanisms, channels for grievance redressal and mechanisms for participating in budgetary processes were all built into the plan. Presented with the reality of these institutional mechanisms, the District could view them as an opportunity or as a hindrance to be sidelined where possible. It chose to take the route of opportunity, and build on these mechanisms. A further driver has, of course, been the funds allocated to CCBs, which are not fungible.

Ability to be Strategic and Flexible to Respond to Opportunity The presence of a think tank in the form of the SPU with its technical resources, allowed the District to think strategically. To support the devolution plan, there were a multitude of national and provincial initiatives to build capacity, for Government, for civil society and for communities. There was little purpose in duplicating these. The SPU supported the Finance and Planning and CD department in coordinating these initiatives and tapping into all opportunities available. Harnessing other resources meant that the District itself could focus itself better, and use its own resources to bring in cutting edge thinking and innovation. The Citizen Perception Survey, CCB Help Desk and introduction of the Customer Call Centre are examples of this innovation.

24

Opportunities and Challenges Although the present Local Government system provides a comprehensive framework for engaging citizen, opportunities exits to further improve citizen engagement while remaining within the Local Government system (Table 3).

Table 3:

Opportunities and possible measures for Strengthening Citizen Engagement within the Local Governments

Opportunities for Citizen Engagement within the Local Government System Citizen Community Boards

Possible Measures for Strengthening Citizen Engagement

Village and Neighbourhood Councils

Musalihat Anjuman and Insaaf Committees

District Mohtasib (Ombudsman) Office

Complaints Cell

Local Governments Monitoring Committees

Information Sharing

Training of bureaucracy, elected representatives and CCBs; Improvement in the system and processes to address the needs of CCBs effectively and efficiently; Availability of the technical staff and social mobilisers within the relevant Local Government departments.

Capacity building and sensitisation of tehsils / towns on the need and importance of village and neighbourhood councils; Provision of resources within the tehsils / towns for creating awareness on village and neighbourhood councils and for conducting election of village and neighbourhood councils; Introduction of mechanisms to provide permanent institutional support for the village and neighbourhood councils.

Capacity building of elected representatives, Musalihat Anjuman and Insaaf Committee; Awareness raising among masses on using these local forums for the resolution of their conflicts and disputes.

The Provincial Government should ensure the establishment of District Mohtasib (Ombudsman) Office in each district.

The Provincial Government needs to ensure the establishment and effective working of Complaints Cell in each Local Government.

The Local Government Commission should ensure that each Local Government elects and notifies monitoring committee; Capacity building of monitoring committees and Local Government staff.

The Provincial Government and Local Government Commission should ensure that the Local Government offices should ensure the access of financial and other performance related information to the general public as per the Local Government Ordinance.

Challenges Achieving Cultural Transformation The devolution process and Faisalabad's reforms were designed to shift power relationships and empower citizens. There were many vested interests and those who would not gain from the process. At the same time Government had carried out business in a closed environment and viewed citizens as beneficiaries of services. A cultural transformation was needed, and there were many who resisted this change in business processes and internal culture, towards greater transparency and accountability and participatory modes of operation.

Overcoming this resistance to achieve real change remains a challenge.

25

Opportunities and Challenges Breakdown of Confidence Between Government and Citizens The reforms have been instigated by a crisis of governance and a break-down of confidence between the state and its citizens. The findings of the Citizen Perception Survey starkly portray the divide. Re-engaging with citizens meant that a wide gulf had to be bridged. This is not a process that can take place overnight, and small steps have contributed to rebuilding confidence. To ensure this, the CDGF has had to ensure that it is responsive and delivers on its promises. It has also had to ensure that it 'hears' and does not just 'listen' to its citizens.

Institutional Home for Citizen Engagement The cross-cutting nature of the citizen engagement agenda means it lacks a clear institutional home, which also implies that resources may not be clearly allocated to this function. While the CD department is well placed for some initiatives, others need to be driven from the corporate core (participatory budgeting, gender, citizen feedback, communication). By default, and perhaps fortuitously, the Finance and Planning department took the lead in many of these initiatives. This was, however, a challenge and there is a need to clearly place the agenda, at least for coordination purposes.

Lack of Resources and Capacities The lack of resources and capacities in the CD department remained a source of frustration.

The Department had a vast agenda and few staff and resources. At one level, this encouraged it to partner and draw on opportunities (for example alliances with the DCC of NGOs for outreach), but at the same it severely constrained them in carrying out their functions. As a department which is critically important to the participative local governance agenda, the Provincial and District Governments need to review staffing and funds available for this function. Also, a number of citizen focused initiatives are new and tools are still being developed at the national and provincial levels (gender responsive budgeting, participatory budgeting). There is an on-going need to build technical capacity within the District.

Cumbersome Rules and Procedures for CCBs While the LGO created citizen based bodies, it also assigned rules more appropriate to formal Government bodies to the CCBs (for example in relation to audits). These rules have proved to be a barrier to implementing CCB projects, problems with rules and processes of CCBs have persisted, and there is a clear need to reform these to allow community organisations the flexibility to develop and play their mandated role in local level development.

Street theatre: a tool for engaging with citizens and for creating awareness

26

Opportunities and Challenges

SUSTAINABILITY The new institutional mechanisms and systems for streamlining procedures have simplified the work of departments, and smoothed the often fractured relationship and interface between the District and its citizens.This in itself has created demand for these mechanisms to continue. The momentum created by opening up information and processes to the public is also likely to be sustained; where citizens have had a taste of freedom in contributing to the decisions that influence their lives, it will not be easy for these freedoms to be withdrawn, without protest and negative publicity.

Aware of the importance of sustaining its citizen focused and participatory initiatives, the CDGF has instituted measures to institutionalise where possible, and seek partnerships and resources to sustain its work in other instances.

The CDGF website is being maintained and updated by the District Government's IT department, under the supervision of the EDO IT. Technical specialists have helped build the capacity of the IT department in website development and maintenance and key processes to ensure information is up to date have been put in place. Also, using the Content Management System (CMS), staff with limited IT skills can update the website.

A number of the communication initiatives have been coordinated by the SPU, with the support of the DFID Project. While the District has recognised the critical importance of this function, the Local Government structure does not provide an institutional home for communication. However, the Faisalabad experience has demonstrated how communication can be used to build internal and external constituencies for reform, communicate change and engage people in key processes. The newsletters and street theatre have been well received, but would require professional inputs and technical support to sustain. Both the radio programmes and the street theatre have been carried out in close collaboration with local NGOs/organisations, and should the resources and coordination for these activities be made available, it will not be difficult to sustain them.

The Call Centre has been a high profile initiative and considerations for its sustainability were built into the design phase. Staff resources have been made available, and the CDGF has engaged a private call centre firm to provide on the job training to the recently recruited Call Centre employees.

Training of the education department on activity based learning as part of WSD

The CCB Help Desk has also been integrated into District Government operations and staff reassigned for its operation. Strong demand for this facility has also been generated among CCBs by establishing the CCB Networks. However, there is always the risk of staff being called back to their original posts, which would be reduced by sanctioning permanent positions for technical and professional staff for the Help Desk.

The civil society and community based forums such as the DDC of NGOs and CCB Network do have considerable potential for being sustained, as they have proved their worth both to their members and to the CD department. The collaboration has been positive and mutually beneficial, and the resources required to sustain these networks are minimal. The CCB network also has support from a national organisation for another year, by which time it should be well established.

27

Sustainability The budget consultations are mandated in the new system, and compliance is likely to become more important as the system is better embedded. The District has internalised the consultative process, and this is likely to continue. Demand has also been created amongst those who participated in the consultations, particularly given that their views were considered.

The sustainability of the Citizen Perception Survey will depend on the extent to which both citizens and Government have found it to be useful. The Survey has been used extensively by the CDGF and importantly, has helped to determine allocations to areas of need. This has created demand within the CDGF corporate team, who view it as a baseline. As the methodology has been developed, there is scope to outsource the exercise, and the CDGF has indicated its intent to repeat it after some years, to gauge whether there have been improvements in service delivery. There is as yet scope to disseminate the findings of the Survey, and the CDGF's responsiveness in taking action, to generate further demand and ownership of the initiative amongst citizens and civil society.

The City District Government is committed to the Whole School Development model. It has allocated land and approved funds for the construction of a larger Institute of Learning (IOL).

The Provincial Government has also approved PC-I for the IOL. The City District Government has also requested the Provincial Government to sanction staff for the IOL. This would ensure that the requisite capacity for rolling out the model is retained in the District. Training materials have already been developed. Similarly, the CDGF has submitted a PC1 to the Provincial Government to establish permanent staff for its PPI cell in the education department, which would ensure that the capacity to continue the PPI initiative is retained.

Budget consultation with DCC of NGOs on Budget 2008-09

28

Sustainability

LESSONS AND REFLECTIONS Strong and Sustained Political Support is Key Wide ranging reforms, which are changing fundamental structures and institutional dynamics require the exercise of continuous political will, constant administrative review and a close collaboration and shared vision between political and executive arms. Without the Nazim and DCO championing the citizen engagement agenda, little could have been achieved. With a clear signal from top management, and a sense of transformative urgency being conveyed to lower tiers, this nascent agenda could be protected and nurtured.

A Clearly Articulated Policy Framework is Important Clarity of purpose is essential for retaining focus and driving change. The principles of participation and citizen engagement were clearly articulated within a policy framework and reflected in all strategic plans. This meant that the agenda had legitimacy and changes could be managed transparently and as a priority.

Changing Behaviours and Establishing New Relationships Take Time Changing from authoritiative and closed bureaucratic systems to open, transparent and participative ones, requires a significant change in mind-set, and can not happen overnight.

Similarly, it takes time for citizens to understand and develop the capacity to enact their new roles and responsibilities. A step-wise, iterative, approach is essential to building confidence and working relationships. Faisalabad has built important foundations for this process, but it is evident that real trust will only be built through consistent and sustained efforts.

Enhancing Both Supply and Demand Side Mechanisms for Accountability is Essential While the citizen engagement agenda focuses on demand-side mechanisms for accountability, it was equally important for the District to reform and streamline its internal accountability mechanisms. With improvements in financial and auditing processes, and sound management information systems in place, the District was in a solid position for opening up to public scrutiny. This allowed it to be responsive to citizen demands for greater transparency and accountability. For example, without management information systems and internal measures for performance management in place, bringing the performance of each department in focus, the Customer Call Centre would not be effective, as responsiveness would be limited.

Transparency and Appropriate Communication Must Underpin Citizen Focused Initiatives Citizens can not participate in local governance if they are not provided the right information.

A critical factor influencing the success of Faisalabad's citizen focus agenda was its commitment to transparency and bringing information out into the public realm, particularly financial information. Top management worked hard at inculcating a culture of transparency.

29

Lessons and Reflections The agenda was also enabled by effective, well-targeted communication, using different media. This was essential, for example the use of street theatre to convey critical information to poor, rural communities was innovative and effective. The targeting process depended in turn on developing an understanding of the communities in the District.

Deliver Change Citizen engagement can only work if Government is serious about delivering change and is responsive to articulated demands. The CDGF's streamlining of CCB processes, its response to the findings of the Citizen Perception Survey and its commitment to responding to complaints received through the Call Centre, signal to citizens that it is serious about changing the dynamics of local governance and delivering on its mandate to deliver quality services to its citizens.

Sharing of the Perception Survey results with line departments

30

Lessons and Reflections

CONCLUSIONS From a fairly traditional Local Government, with limited interaction with citizens and stakeholders, guarded about official information and internal processes, Faisalabad has witnessed a transformation towards a new culture of transparency and accountability, where citizens can begin to occupy new spaces and enact new roles and responsibilities. Driven by the commitment of its leadership, the City District has nurtured what was an embryonic agenda, to a driving force which permeates its strategies and actions. Much has been achieved, and many of the changes have been a beacon for other District Governments in Pakistan.

Transparency has underpinned the change process. Citizens are far better informed about the CDGF's services and business processes, in particular financial information has been brought into the public realm for the first time. Innovative communication tools have been used to reach out to the poor and marginal.

The District has worked on both the horizontal and diagonal axes of accountability. Internal accountability has been enhanced and is based on sound management information. The District has streamlined its internal processes to ensure that participatory mechanisms can function effectively. New partnerships have been put in place for service delivery. Social accountability has been an important objective.

Citizen voice mechanisms have been developed and supported and elected representatives trained to allow them to execute their roles more effectively. Citizen feedback mechanisms are now operational to channel voice, and measures are in place to ensure responsiveness.

Attempts have been made to bring the new mechanisms for oversight and accountability to life. Importantly, steps have been taken to ensure that all these measures will be sustained.

Challenges undoubtedly remain and the District has some way to go in achieving its goals.

There is a need to ensure a deeper and broader engagement with citizens, to have fullfledged processes for participatory planning and budgeting, more institutionalized mechanisms for public scrutiny, more partnerships for service delivery. A greater focus on reaching the poor and marginal, and ensuring that those who have been invited to participate are truly representative is also important to ensure that it is truly inclusive. There needs to be equity in partnerships and trust needs to be established between service providers and citizens, and then nurtured.

Local governance in a participatory framework brings new complexities, with multiple actors whose needs and expectations must be managed. Faisalabad, like other Local Governments the world over, has been navigating that complexity. Till now, its progress has been significant, and its achievements have paved the way for becoming a truly transparent, inclusive, effective, efficient and responsive Local Government.

31

Conclusions

BIBLIOGRAPHY

32

Devolution in Pakistan: Annex 1- Recent History. ADB/DFID/WB, 2004 Citizen-centred local governance: strategies to combat democratic deficits. Shah, A. and Shah, F. Development 2007, 50 (1) Making services work for poor people. The World Development Report. World Bank, 2004 Social Accountability: An introduction to the concept and emerging practice. Malena, C. with Forster, R. and Singh, J. Social Development Paper No. 76. World Bank. 2004 Citizens and Governance. Commonwealth Foundation and CIVICUS. 1999 Champions of participation: Engaging citizens in local governance.

IDS/DFID/DCLG/IDeA, 2007 Making governance work for the poor. DFID White Paper. 2006 Selected services in Faisalabad: Perceptions and Realities. CDGF. 2007

Annex 1 Annex 1:

Framework for Citizen Engagement in the Punjab Local Government Ordinance 2001

Table A1-1:

The Punjab Local Government Ordinance 2001 and Citizen Engagement

Transparency and Openness

Section 114 Accounts (5)

A statement of monthly and annual accounts and such other necessary statements shall be placed at a conspicuous place by the Local Government concerned for public inspection.

Section 137 Transparency (1) Every citizen shall have the right to information about any office of the District Government, Tehsil Municipal Administration and Union Administration; (2) Every office shall provide requisite information, if not restricted under any law for the time being in force, on the prescribed forms and on payment of such fee as may be prescribed; (3) Information about the staffing and the performance of the office of a Local Government during the preceding month shall, as far as possible, be displayed at a prominent place within the premises of the office for access by the citizens.

Responsiveness

Section 188 Complaint Cell Every District Government, Tehsil Municipal Administration, Town Municipal Administration and Union Administration shall set up a complaint cell for redressal of grievances within the ambit of their responsibilities under this Ordinance.

Section 134 Zila Mohtasib (1)

Without prejudice to the provisions as contained in the Punjab office of the Ombudsman Act, 1997, in every district there shall be a Zila Mohtasib;

(2)

Accountability

The Zila Mohtasib shall redress citizens' complaints against mal-administration of the holders of public offices in the Local Governments within the District.

Section 138 Monitoring by Committees (1) The Monitoring Committees elected by the Zila Council shall be responsible for monitoring the functioning of the offices of the District Government and preparing quarterly evaluation reports on the prescribed format; (2) The Monitoring Committees of Tehsil Council and Town Council shall be responsible for monitoring the functioning of the offices of the Tehsil Municipal Administration or Town Municipal Administration and preparing quarterly evaluation reports on the prescribed format; (3) The Monitoring Committees of Union Council shall be responsible for monitoring the functioning of all offices of the District Government, Tehsil Municipal Administration, Town Municipal Administration and Union Administration for delivery of services within its area and preparing quarterly evaluation reports on the prescribed format; (4) The reports referred to in sub-sections (1) to (3) shall, in particular, contain evaluation of the performance of each office in relation to

Citizen Focus

(a)

achievement of its targets;

(b)

responsiveness to citizens' difficulties;

(c)

efficiency in the delivery of services; and

(d)

transparent functioning.

(5) The Monitoring Committees shall submit their quarterly reports to the respective Councils which may through a resolution require the respective Nazim to take necessary action.

Section 88 Functions of the Union Council (1)

The functions of the Union Council shall be to(f)

mobilize the community involvement in maintenance of public ways, public streets, culverts, bridges and public buildings, de-silting of canals and other development pursuits Section 93 Declaration of Village and Neighbourhood Councils Upon a proposal of the Tehsil Municipal Administration or Town Municipal Administration, as the case may be;

33

Conclusions (i)

the Tehsil Council may determine and declare by notification a Village or a Neighbourhood in urban areas in the tehsil, to have a Village Council or, as the case may be, Neighbourhood Council, and number of members to be elected for such Councils; and

(ii)

the Town Council may determine and declare by notification a Neighbourhood or a Village in the rural areas in the town, to have a Neighbourhood Council or, as the case may be, Village Council, and number of members to be elected for such Councils.

Section 98 Composition of Citizen Community Board (1)

In every local area, groups of non-elected citizens may, through voluntary, proactive and self-help initiatives, set up any number of Citizen Community Boards. Such Citizen Community Boards shall be set up for the purposes of, inter alia, energizing the community for development and improvement in service delivery, development and management of a new or existing public facility, identification of development and municipal needs, mobilization of stakeholders for community involvement in the improvement and maintenance of facilities, welfare of the handicapped, destitute, widows and families in extreme poverty, establishment of farming, marketing and consumers cooperatives and reinforcing the capacity of a special Monitoring Committee at the behest of the concerned Council; provided that grants shall be available subject to the provisions of section 119.

Section 102 Constitution of Musalihat Anjuman (1)

In each Union, a Musalihat Anjuman shall be constituted consisting of a panel of three Musaleheen (Conciliators) one of whom shall be its Convener, to be selected by the Insaaf Committee of the Union Council, within thirty days after its election, from amongst the residents of the Union who are publicly known to be persons of integrity, good judgment and command respect.

Budget Rule 2003 Section 11(1) Budget Call Letter The Budget Call Letter shall be finalized after consultation with the relevant stakeholders. Explanation: The expression "stakeholders" include Councils, elected representatives, general public, women's organization, private sector, Citizen Community Boards, Non-Governmental Organizations, Community Based Organizations and other organizations.

34

OUR OTHER PUBLICATIONS 2

1

Managing Change

Human Resource Management

for Improving Service Delivery

for Good Governance

Learning to embrace the challenge of good governance

Building local government capacity for effective service delivery

S.M. Khatib Alam Karin Tang Mahmood Akhtar

March 2008

S. M. Khatib Alam David Alan Watson Muhammad Shahid Alvi

March 2008

SelfActualization Esteem (self and others) Social Needs Safety and Security Basic Physiological Needs

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

4

3 Financial Management

5

Union Council Profiling

for Good Governance

& Service Mapping

From Deficit to Surplus

For Pro-poor Planning & Investment

S.M. Khatib Alam Imran Yousafzai

S.M. Khatib Alam Janet Gardener Muhammad Tariq

March 2008

March 2008

Communications for Good Governance Building local government capacity for effective service delivery S.M. Khatib Alam Nadir Ehsan Humaira Khan

March 2008

150

100

Rs. Millions

50

0

-50

-100

-150

FY 2004-05

FY 2005-06

FY 2006-07

FY 2007-08 Projected

FY 2008-09 Projected

FY 2009-10 Projected

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

6

7

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

8

9

Citizen Voice in Local Governance

Citizen Engagement

Promising Change

Measuring Change

The Citizen Perception Survey

in Local Governance

Six Case Studies on Whole School Development

the education research component

S.M. Khatib Alam Sumara Khan Mehreen Hosain

S.M. Khatib Alam Muhammad Tariq Mehreen Hosain

March 2008

March 2008

March 2008

Dr. Fareeha Zafar

March 2008

Dr. Fareeha Zafar

TS ES ER INT ER ITY ETH UN OG MM ING T R E O T TH GC AC OGE TIN GT OR IDIN PP ION DEC SU LTAT U S CON

M INFOR

10

G SHARIN ATION City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

12

11

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

13

Teacher Training

Public Private Partnership

Management Information Systems

Enabling Joined-Up Government

in Whole School Development

in Education: from Policy to Implementation

in Local Government

Introducing Geographic Information System

Change and Transformation as a Reflective Process

Value Addition and Best Practices

Changing the dynamics of governance through ICTs

March 2008

Brigid Smith

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

March 2008

Beala Jamil

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

March 2008

S.M. Khatib Alam Nadir Ehsan Kashif Abbas

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

March 2008

Dr. Umar Saif Muntazir Mehdi Gul Hafeez Khokhar

City District Government Faisalabad, Pakistan

All case studies including other reports can be downloaded from the web site: http://www.faisalabad.gov.pk

ABOUT THE AUTHORS S.M. Khatib Alam - Project Manager and Overall Team Leader Khatib Alam is an international management consultant with considerable experience of leading large and diverse teams on multi-disciplinary, complex and challenging projects around the world. He has a particular expertise in strategic management, organisational change management, institutional strengthening, urban development and corporate social investment. Since 2004, he has been the Overall International Team Leader on the innovative DFID funded SDLGF project.

Mehreen Hosain - Development Consultant Mehreen Hosain is a policy analyst with a multidisciplinary background in environmental management and social development. Over the past two decades she has worked for international and bilateral agencies, central and Local Governments, and the NGO sector across Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa. Her expertise includes social policy analysis, institutional development, decentralization and Local Government reform, monitoring and evaluation and environmental management. She has been involved with the Support to SDLGF project over the past four years, where she has supported the work on poverty analysis and citizen engagement.

Muhammad Tariq Mr. Muhammad Tariq has been working as a Community Development Specialist in SDLGF project (DFID) since April 2004. He possesses more than eight years experience in the development sector, most of which pertains to reforms and institutional development in the Local Government departments. His most recent work focused mainly on change management with a particular emphasis on improving service delivery, enhancing citizens engagement and addressing poverty and social exclusion.

City District Government Faisalabad DCO Office, Near Iqbal Stadium Faisalabad, Pakistan Tel: +92 (0) 41 9200205 Fax: +92 (0) 41 9200206 E-mail: email@faisalabad.gov.pk Internet: http://www.faisalabad.gov.pk

Strategic Policy Unit 2nd Floor, DCO Office Near Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad Pakistan Tel: +92 (0) 41 9201256 Fax: +92 (0) 41 9201257 E-mail: email@spu.com.pk Internet: http://www.spu.com.pk

Management Consultants GHK International Ltd. 526 Fulham Road, London, SW6 5NR United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) 20 74718000 Fax: +44 (0) 20 7736 0784 E-mail: email@ghkint.com Internet: http://www.ghkint.com Internet: http://www.ghkpak.com