LAHORE: $2.6 million will be available for projects selected for the first phase of a three-year long Citizens’ Voice Project, by United States Agency for International Development, meant to strengthen democratic governance in Pakistan.
CVP chief of party Mukhtar Ahmad Ali announced at the launch ceremony on Monday.
The first phase (three months) projects will prioritise the following themes: citizens oversight of municipal services (COMS), energy sector reforms (ESR) and improving water rights (IWR).
Ali said a maximum of 10 (USAID) grants would be given for COMS projects, with a maximum of Rs8.5 million funds per grant, during the first quarter. In Punjab, projects for Bahawalpur, Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions will be preferred. Malakand division and Peshawar district would be preferred in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Sukkur, Larkana and Mirpurkhas divisions in Sindh.
Similarly, 10 grants, each worth Rs8.5 million, would be awarded for ESR projects, he added.
He said four grants each worth Rs12.75 million would be given for IWR projects. Projects in Sindh, Punjab and KP will be preferred over those in other areas of the country.
Ali said on average 40 grants each between $50,000 and $250,000 wound be given during each cycle of the project.
In sum, $45 million will be spent on selected projects under the CVP from funds approved for Pakistan under Kerry-Lugar-Berman Act. Of these, $38 million will be provided to the NGOs for the projects and $7 million spent on overheads, according to the TDEA finance officer Shehzadul Hasan.
The CVP objective is to improve citizens’ input in policy making their oversight of government’s working and to enhance accountability as well as the capacity of the public sector.
The CVP will be implemented by the USAID with assistance from the Trust for Democratic Development (TDEA). The TDEA will manage and monitor funding and implementation through The Asia Foundation (TAF) and Anjum Asim Shahid Rahman (AASR)-Grant Thornton.
Speaking at the launch ceremony, United States Consul General Nina Fite said the project would help citizens engage with government officials on issues that directly concern them. She said government policies were expected to be more effective once citizens’ input was taken into account.
During question hour, some suggested that funds should also be provided for reforms in the criminal justice system. The USAID officials stated that themes of the CVP had already been identified. They said criminal justice system could, however, be incorporated into projects lined up for future.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 22nd, 2011.
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