Austerity measures: ‘Reduced staff for more efficiency at NCHD’

ISLAMABAD:

In a bid to improve effeciency and control expenditure, the management of the National Commission for Human Development (NCHD) has decided to downsize the department.

This was stated by Federal Minister for Professional and Technical Training Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada on Monday during a meeting attended by NCHD chairperson Dr Nafeesa Shah and other senior NCHD officers. “Overstaffing must be curtailed in the head office in addition to provincial and district offices, which would lessen the burden on the commission,” Pirzada said.

At the meeting, it was decided that the number of official at NCHD head office would be reduced from 172 to 114 and in its provincial offices, staff would be reduced from 3,558 to 3,296.

NCHD has been facing severe financial problems and its staffers have also not gotten their salaries for months. The issues started when it was devolved to the provinces under 18th Amendment, but later the Supreme Court ordered to retain it with the centre.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 10^th, 2012.