Musadik for time-bound KPIs to assess top officials’ performance

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change Musadik Malik on Tuesday stressed the need for having time-bound key performance indicators (KPI) for ministries to effective assess the performance of top officers effectively.

He stated this in a closed door meeting. A question was raised in the meeting that why ex-cadre officials were not appointed to key positions.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had constituted a committee on civil service reforms on August 28, 2024 under the chairmanship of Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal with the terms of reference (ToRs) to review, identify gaps and analyse the existing structure of civil service while building upon work done earlier, recommend proposals to make civil service structure compatible with emerging national needs and aligned with the best international practices by leveraging inductions and retention of best available talent to make civil service as a service of choice for national development and recommend the performance management system (PMS) with focus to enhance efficiency for effective delivery of public service, accountability and responsiveness of civil service while addressing challenges of emerging needs.

Five sub-working groups were constituted, and so far 12 meetings have been held, including the one convened on Tuesday.

So far, three working groups have given their recommendations, and now two groups, including training of bureaucracy and remunerations, will share their thoughts in the coming weeks.

According to an official statement issued after the meeting, a high-level meeting on civil service reforms was jointly chaired in Islamabad by Federal Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal and Federal Minister for Climate Change Musadik Malik.

The meeting was attended by Secretary Planning Awais Manzoor Sumra, as well as secretaries from the ministries of Finance, Interior, Foreign Affairs, Communications, Cabinet Division, besides senior officials.

The meeting also reviewed the progress made on previously issued directions concerning civil service reform and to evaluate steps taken so far.

Speaking in the meeting, Ahsan Iqbal emphasised that Pakistan’s over-reliance on the English language as a marker of competence had marginalised the majority of the population.

He noted that no country in the world had achieved development solely because of proficiency in English, yet in Pakistan, this language-based system had held back nearly 90 per of its citizens. He stated that real progress requires valuing knowledge, skills, and professional competence over mere linguistic proficiency.

He said equal opportunities must be created for all, regardless of their language background, to unlock the true potential of the country’s human capital.

Iqbal proposed the creation of a new executive service cadre that would allow mid-career officers to serve in domains aligned with their expertise and interests, thereby improving institutional effectiveness and job satisfaction.

Musadik Malik echoed these concerns and pointed out a critical gap within his own ministry.

He observed that the Ministry of Climate Change did not currently have officers with relevant academic or professional backgrounds in environmental sciences.

He questioned how a ministry can function effectively without domain knowledge and stressed the urgent need to prioritise technical expertise in public service roles. The minister underscored that it was not mere language but genuine skill and substance that drive results.

Sharing his broader observations, Malik remarked that despite serving in five different ministries, he had yet to come across anyone with a well-defined work plan or measurable outcomes.

He criticised the absence of annual work plans among secretaries, stating that without such frameworks, evaluating inputs and outputs was impossible. He concluded that reforms which did not directly aim to improve performance were inherently meaningless.

Both the ministers agreed that the discourse on civil service reforms must now move beyond policy discussions and result in actionable strategies to enhance efficiency, promote merit, and ensure institutional performance across the government sectors.