People’s assembly calls for reforming public finance management

ABBOTTABAD: A people’s assembly organised by the Omar Asghar Khan Foundation here on Wednesday called for reforming the public finance management in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

It also demanded a fair and transparent provincial finance commission award. More than 350 women and men representing the civil society organizations from Abbottabad, Battagram, Dera Ismail Khan, Haripur, Karak, Kohat, Mansehra, Mardan, Nowshera, Peshawar Shangla and Swat attended the people’s assembly. At the event, the foundation presented its analysis of district-wise distribution of development funds, sectoral allocations, fiscal decentralization, gender-based budgets, and trends in block funds in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Budget of financial year 2019-20 and assessments of the province’s budgets over the past 10 years. “Budgets often seem daunting with figures in millions and billions. But it is important to understand that budgets have a direct link with the availability of medicines in a village BHU, provision of drinking water in a village council, regular disposal of garbage in urban neighbourhoods and construction of rural link roads,” explained the foundation’s Executive Director Rashida Dohad. She added that the data and analysis would help the government to improve the conditions of public schools, healthcare facilities, roads, drinking water and other public services.