60% of non-salary budget for schools released
Rs8.39 billion had been issued for NSB of schools in 36 districts of the province.
PHOTO: AFP
LAHORE:
A large portion of the non-salary budget (NSB) allocated for schools in fiscal year 2016-17 is released less than half a month prior to the announcement of the budget for the next financial year, The Express Tribune has learnt.
According to a notification issued by the Punjab Education Sector Reform Programme (PMIU), Rs8.39 billion had been issued for NSB of schools in 36 districts of the province.
The statement was released to inform all Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the District Education Authorities (DEAs) of the province. The notification was issued on May 12, just a few days prior to the announcement of Punjab budget for the fiscal year 2017-18, scheduled to be announced on Friday (today).
The Rs8.39 billion is part of the Rs14 billion allocated in the budget of fiscal year 2016-17 and makes up around 59.92% of the total amount allocated for the whole fiscal year. The Punjab Finance Department had only disbursed Rs5.61 billion and the rest was released just days prior to the next budget.
K-P Higher Education Department announces summer vacations from May 27
The NSB was meant to improve conditions of classrooms, hire part-time coaches, build toilet blocks, provide double shifts in schools to control overcrowding. These funds were to be given to the district governments and had to be spent by them as per their needs.
The notification of a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, stated that the NSB funds for all functional Primary, Elementary, High and Higher Secondary schools shall be transferred by the Finance Department/PMIU into Special Drawing Accounts (SDAs) for NSB for FY 2016-17. Funds shall be further transferred to School Council accounts accordingly.
Talking to The Express Tribune, Associate Professor of Economics at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Development and Economic Alternatives (IDEAS) Faisal Bari said the trend to allocate large chunks of the budget at the very end of the fiscal year, showed the weakness of the system. He said that a check was needed that made sure that funds were being used every quarter with a system of checks and balances.
He said, “Many projects are put in the budget just to make some quarters happy, but the government does not intend to follow through on them. Such projects are also part of the development budget that remains unused. Another problem is the re-appropriation of budget to other projects, schemes of the government”.
Earlier, a summary of the development budget expenditure in the fiscal year 2016-17 showed that the Punjab government had spent slightly over 52.56% of the total amount for the development budget of the education sector.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 2nd, 2017.
A large portion of the non-salary budget (NSB) allocated for schools in fiscal year 2016-17 is released less than half a month prior to the announcement of the budget for the next financial year, The Express Tribune has learnt.
According to a notification issued by the Punjab Education Sector Reform Programme (PMIU), Rs8.39 billion had been issued for NSB of schools in 36 districts of the province.
The statement was released to inform all Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the District Education Authorities (DEAs) of the province. The notification was issued on May 12, just a few days prior to the announcement of Punjab budget for the fiscal year 2017-18, scheduled to be announced on Friday (today).
The Rs8.39 billion is part of the Rs14 billion allocated in the budget of fiscal year 2016-17 and makes up around 59.92% of the total amount allocated for the whole fiscal year. The Punjab Finance Department had only disbursed Rs5.61 billion and the rest was released just days prior to the next budget.
K-P Higher Education Department announces summer vacations from May 27
The NSB was meant to improve conditions of classrooms, hire part-time coaches, build toilet blocks, provide double shifts in schools to control overcrowding. These funds were to be given to the district governments and had to be spent by them as per their needs.
The notification of a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, stated that the NSB funds for all functional Primary, Elementary, High and Higher Secondary schools shall be transferred by the Finance Department/PMIU into Special Drawing Accounts (SDAs) for NSB for FY 2016-17. Funds shall be further transferred to School Council accounts accordingly.
Talking to The Express Tribune, Associate Professor of Economics at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Development and Economic Alternatives (IDEAS) Faisal Bari said the trend to allocate large chunks of the budget at the very end of the fiscal year, showed the weakness of the system. He said that a check was needed that made sure that funds were being used every quarter with a system of checks and balances.
He said, “Many projects are put in the budget just to make some quarters happy, but the government does not intend to follow through on them. Such projects are also part of the development budget that remains unused. Another problem is the re-appropriation of budget to other projects, schemes of the government”.
Earlier, a summary of the development budget expenditure in the fiscal year 2016-17 showed that the Punjab government had spent slightly over 52.56% of the total amount for the development budget of the education sector.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 2nd, 2017.