Budget-making training for LG officials
While the budgetary measures show that the government is trying to offset the adverse effect of inflation on the poor, they do not indicate any significant remedy for the present financial malaise. Photo: file
Two five-day capacity building workshops held in Peshawar recently brought together officers from Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) and devolved government departments from Bajaur and Mohmand districts to learn about the budgeting processes for tehsil-level governance.
These workshops were organized through a collaborative effort between the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Merged Areas Governance Project (MAGP) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
A total of 46 tehsil-level officials including officers from TMAs and nine devolved departments participated.
This provided them an opportunity to learn about the new budget rules; processes and roles and responsibilities under the K-P Local Government (Amendment) Act 2019; Rules of Business; and the budget call circular. Participants also gained hands-on experience in preparing development budgets and presenting them for approval in a series of simulation exercises designed to encourage inter-departmental coordination.
"Since the LG system has been established in the merged areas (MA) for the first time and several government departments have been devolved, trainings for making buedgets for tehsil local government officers, including devolved offices and TMA, are important as it is something they have never done before," said Zaheerul Islam Shah, K-P Secretary for LG, Elections and Rural Development Department.
The workshops were held in close partnership with the LG department, with the objective of laying the groundwork for building strong and responsive local governance systems in MA.