BARGAD: WORKING PAPER

Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment

Special Focus on Ministry of Youth Affairs and the Ministry of Education

This working paper provides an overview of the implications of 18th amendment and provincial autonomy with special focus to youth affairs and education ministries. It is presented here as a backgrounder to the policy discussions on youth affairs in post-18th amendment era. BARGAD thanks Ali Salman and Iqbal Haider Butt for preparing this working paper and is indebted particularly to Dr Saqib Aziz (Secretary, Youth Affairs, Sports and Culture, Government of Balochistan) and Mr Syed Mehmood Hassan (Deputy Secretary Coordination, Economic Affairs Division, Government of Pakistan) making valuable observations on its draft.

Bargad: Working Paper 2 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment

Provincial Autonomy and the implications of 18th Amendment

Special Focus us on Ministry of Youth Affairs and the Ministry of Education Historical Background Sharing and devolution of power has its roots in the 1973 constitution of Pakistan. Concurrent list was an important provision in the constitution. It included all those subjects that were to be jointly taken care of by the federal and provincial governments. There were two lists in the constitution, one for federal subjects and one for shared powers. The concurrent list comprised of 47 different subject matters such as civil and criminal law, preventive detention, arms and explosives, drugs, marriage and divorce, adoption, bankruptcy, arbitration, trusts, transfer of property and registration of property, population planning, electricity, tourism, trade unions, and other matters of common interest. There was no list of subjects for the provinces, the assumption being that all the residual areas will be taken care of by them. The President could establish a Council of Common Interests (CCI) to deal with the matters identified in both the federal as well as the concurrent lists.1 The government of the time reached an understanding that the concurrent list will be removed from the constitution ten years after its promulgation. That of course did not happen and the country continued to be run from the centre at Islamabad. Over the period of time, our constitution has been significantly disfigured by a number of authoritarian rulers who have governed the country. 18th Amendment to the Constitution Since the 1973 constitution, the elected representatives have endeavored that the power stays in the parliament. Conversely, the constitution has gone through several amendments, amending the entire power structure of the government. 8th and 17th amendments to the constitution are undeniable examples of such practices. On the bright side however, the democratically elected President of Pakistan signed the 18th amendment to the constitution into a law on 19th April 2010. The 18th amendment repealed the 17th amendment that had given enormous authority to the president. The 18th amendment is designed to have a profound impact on the way the country is governed and its economy is managed. When the provinces will receive the promised additional powers as a result of the abolition of the concurrent list in the Pakistani constitution, large amounts of economic and political authority will shift to the provinces. They will, for instance, gain the right to manage labor laws; environmental impact of development in both the public and the private sectors of the economy; generation of much larger amounts of electricity than currently permitted; development of infrastructure;

1.

Javed Burki, Shahid. (2010). 18th amendment: Pakistans constitution redesigned. ISAS Working Paper.

Bargad: Working Paper 3 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment movement of goods and commodities within their own boundaries; improving the level of education and providing for the acquisition of usable skills by the populace. Purpose of This Paper: As a result of the 18th amendment, some important ministries including Youth and Education have entered different phases of devolution. This essentially leads to questions like: What are the challenges that may hinder successful execution of the 18th amendment? What will be the consequential effect of this devolution on the current status of process and progress in these areas? What sort of knowledge and experience will help strengthen the provinces to step up and finally start practicing the long demanded autonomy? This paper targets at highlighting such challenges as faced by the ministries with special focus on the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Ministry of Education. Initial Phase of Implementation The government decided in the light of the 18th amendment to initially devolve five federal ministries, including Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Ministry of Special Initiatives, Ministry of Zakat and Ushr, Ministry of Population Welfare and Ministry of Youth Affairs.2 This decision was also approved by the committee formed to implement the 18th amendment by the constitutional reforms committee (CRC).3 On December 2, 2010, the federal government devolved these five ministries.4 It must be interestingly noted here that the Youth Affairs are not part of the concurrent list of the original constitution of 1973. In fact, the word of youth has not been mentioned in the constitution even for a single time. As a part of the plan, Ministry of Youth and its international affairs, foreign aid and interprovincial matters will now be overseen by the federation while legislation powers regarding youth, youth organization forum and youth centers have been delegated to the provinces.5 Economic Affairs Division (EAD) in Islamabad will handle international aspects/ agreements and aid coordination. National Internship Programme and National Volunteer Movement will be the responsibility of the Establishment Division and the Islamabad Capital Territory(ICT)/ Interior Division will run youth centres and hostels in the ICT [please see chart given in the next page]. Similarly, Planning and Development Policies of the Population Welfare Division had been delegated to Planning and Development Division, donor and international coordination to
2 3

Alvi, Mumtaz. (2010, December 25). Early devolution of youth affairs ministry sought. The News Lahore. Correspondent. (2010, November 28). Fate of five federal ministries finalised. The Financial Daily Lahore. 4 Ali Khan, Mohammad. (2010, December 7). Foreign funded projects in peril. The Dawn. 5 Correspondent, Initials. (2010, November 22). Paper work completed for transfer of 5 ministries to provinces. Daily Khabrain.

Bargad: Working Paper 4 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment Economic Affairs Division (EAD), collection, maintenance and analysis of demographic and population statistics to Statistics Division, mainstreaming population factor in development planning process to Interior Division and Directorate of Central Warehouse and supplies Karachi had also been given to the Planning and Development Division. Organizing and operating matters, field workers training, policy-making and quality control, research and public policy, marketing and communication of the population ministry would also become a provincial matter.
Economic Affairs Division (EAD) International Affairs/ Agreements International Aid Federation ICT Administration/ Interior Division Youth Centres/ Hostels in ICT National Internship Programme National Volunteer Programme Youth Forums

Post 18th Amendment: Functions and Structure for Youth Affairs in Pakistan
Provinces

Establishment Division

All Policy and Implementation of Youth Affairs

Youth Centres

The ministries to be devolved to the provinces in the second phase included ministries of social welfare and special education, science and technology, culture, tourism and education. Ministry of Youth Affairs & National Youth Policy The Ministry of Youth Affairs was created on November 18, 2005. It presented a National Youth Policy in December 2008 which was approved in January 2009. The Making of the Federal Youth Ministry
Youth Affairs Division established Merged with Ministry of Women Development Again made a separate Division Merged with Ministry of Culture on as a Wing Raised to the status of a full-fledged Ministry June 12, 1989 October 09, 1993 August 18, 1996 November 19, 1996 November 18, 2005

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Before the formulation of national youth policy, there were a number of Ministries and Organizations that were already working in various areas related to youth. However, the aim of this policy was to integrate their programmes and provide overall sense of direction consistent with the needs of the country.

Process of Provincial Autonomy at a Glance

Concurrent List (1973) Removal of the concurrent list ten years after its promulgation Charter of Democracy 47 Subjects Understanding of the 1973 14 May 2006

The President of Pakistan in Joint Session of the Parliament 28 March 2009 asks to Constitute a Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms (PCCR) National Assembly Passes a Motion 10 April 2009 Senate Passes a Motion Notification to form the Committee 18th Amendment to the Constitution Federal Ministry of Youth Affairs Dissolved 29 April 2009 23 June 2009 19 April 2010 2 Dec 2010

The National Youth Policy was designed to cater various critical issues related to the youth. Its 15 key principles included creation of awareness amongst the youth of Pakistan, motivating them, involving them as responsible citizens in national policy formulation, integrating them as a nation, developing programmes for the development of their skills and intellectual capacity, training them for better employment and understanding of economic & market opportunities, arranging internships and on campus jobs, inculcating a sense of social volunteerism in them, providing incentives for talented and high performing youth, instilling a sense of belonging to special youth by making them a part of larger youth groups, bringing gender balance, improving workplace environments in the back drop of suitable legal framework and providing specific incentives to females: to come forward in seeking jobs and entrepreneurship. A number of Ministries, Provincial Departments, organizations, NGOs, International Donors, UN agencies, philanthropists, corporate bodies and CBOs were engaged with the ministry of youth affairs in achieving the afore mentioned objectives. They included Pakistan Poverty alleviation fund, British council, International Labour Organization, United Nations Fund for Population

Bargad: Working Paper 6 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment Advancement, Rural Support Program Network, Intel Pakistan, Dhaka Ahsania Mission and World population fund as reliable partners.

Devolution of the Ministries

Problems faced by provinces / stakeholders in the devolution process No devolution process is free of complications. Likewise, the devolution plan for the first pool of ministries is facing several expected and unexpected problems at both ends i.e. the provinces as well as the implementation commission. Following gives a brief overview of the key issues. Financial Constraints To start with the financial constraints involved in the devolution process, the provinces have started complaining about the fact that they are not in a position to bear the burden of accommodating the employees working in each of the ministries in addition to other costs. 6 Employees of the Ministries The 3,918 employees of these five ministries would be sent to surplus pool on the basis of nonacceptance and if any employee wishes to go to the province than the center would facilitate him. On the other hand Establishment Division has issued notification that federal government before advertising for new posts should seek NOC so that the surplus employees could be accommodated first.6 Provinces, on the other hand, lack the capacity to absorb several employees, who are supposed to be adjusted in provincial ministries. Foreign Funded Projects Devolution of five federal ministries to the provinces has put many foreign funded projects being implemented in the provinces in doldrums because of its imprecision about the future of these projects. Devolution of first batch of ministries has been slightly haphazard in regard to foreign projects; none of Foreign funding agencies have been consulted regarding their funding for various projects in Pakistan.7 According to a notification from the federal government all the foreign funded projects now stand devolved to the provinces. However, there is no established focal point for projects that are already running in all provinces. As a result, funding donors will require dealing with each province separately. For them, Running of national programmes may also become a difficult job as priorities of each province vary from other.

6 7

Correspondent. (2010, November 28). Fate of five federal ministries finalised. The Financial Daily Lahore.

Ali Khan, Mohammad. (2010, December 7). Foreign funded projects in peril. The Dawn.

Bargad: Working Paper 7 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment The Economic Affairs Division, which has been assigned this task, is coordinating the international commitments and affairs all single handedly. It will require support to sustain the manifold workload before long. As for now, there is also a lot of confusion regarding the deciding authority on this issue i.e. if the Economic Affairs Division or Implementation Commission will decide the fate of the foreign projects. 18th amendment and education The amendment holds some major implications for the countrys system of education. Through it a new article, 25A, has been inserted into the constitution that reads Right to education: The state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to 16 years in such manner as may be determined by law. This is an important undertaking by the state since education, in contemporary times, is considered an important tool for enhancing ones chances for socioeconomic development. Another major implication of the 18th Amendment for education is that the curriculum, syllabus, planning, policy, centers of excellence and standards of education will fall under the purview of the provinces. This is a big step forward for education. However, the problem rising here are less technical and more principal based in nature. It has been argued that the contents of the curricula should remain with the federation since the provinces could take liberties which may result in putting the unity and ideology of the country at risk. Critics have asked how standards would be maintained across the provinces and how quality would be assured. And what if all the provinces introduced regional languages in schools? Would this weaken the federation? The concerns of the federation are genuine regarding the future of education once it becomes a provincial responsibility. However, this concern seems to emanate primarily from a lack of trust in the capacity and ability of the provinces. It is interesting to note, though, that the provinces are already providing for school and college education and they do have the capacity (in terms of intellectual resources) to handle the job.8 As far as funds are concerned, the provinces have been funding education from their budgets. The federation would give partial grants to the universities only.

Siddiqui, Shahid. (2010, October 11). 18th amendment and education. The Dawn.

Bargad: Working Paper 8 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment The provinces should have the autonomy to design the curricula according to contextual needs and learners requirement. If the federation is very concerned about the curriculum issue, it can keep Islamiat and Pakistan Studies under its control. The curricula for other subjects should be designed by the provinces concerned. Education standards can be monitored through provincial quality assurance departments and the inter-provincial coordination committee. Similarly, the provinces may introduce regional languages as a subject in their respective provinces as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is attempting to do. Conclusion The solution for successful implementation of the 18th amendment and specifically the abolishment of the concurrent list and the devolution of ministries to the provinces lies in the growth and development of provinces to manage these activities. The provinces face a number of challenges including human resource constraints, budgetary constraints, physical infrastructure issues, lack of experience of running programs at provincial level, no experience of direct interaction with international donors, low level of knowledge base at the provincial level and absence of information about various serving agencies and NGOs at provincial level. If the provincial governments remain dependent on the central government for funds, the autonomy promised by the amendment will remain only illusory. On the bright side, however, if the provincial government takes cautious and well planned steps in coordination with the implementation commission then this long demanded autonomy can be translated into reality. On part of the federation, the situation demands a positive attitude by the federation, a trust in the competence, integrity and patriotism of the provinces. We need to make a move from holding the provinces together to persuading them to come together. The 18th Amendment provides an excellent opportunity for such a paradigm shift.

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Annexure A: Concurrent Legislative List

1. Criminal law, including all matters included in the Pakistan Penal Code on the commencing day, but excluding offences against laws with respect to any of the matters specified in the Federal Legislative List and excluding the use of naval, military and air forces in aid of civil power. 2. Criminal procedure, including all matters included in the Code of Criminal Procedure, on the commencing day. 3. Civil procedure, including the law of limitation and all matters included in the Code of Civil Procedure on the commencing day, the recovery in a Province or the Federal Capital of claims in respect of taxes and other public demands, including arrears of land revenue and sums recoverable as such, arising outside that Province. 4. Evidence and oath; recognition of laws, public acts and records of judicial proceedings. 5. Marriage and divorce; infants and minors; adoption. 6. Wills, intestacy and succession, save as regards agricultural land. 7. Bankruptcy and insolvency, administrators- general and official trustees. 8. Arbitration. 9. Contracts, including partnership, agency, contracts of carriage, and other special forms of contracts, but not including contracts relating to agricultural land. 10. Trusts and trustees. 11. Transfer of property other than agriculture land, registration of deeds and documents. 12. Actionable wrongs, save in so far as included in laws with respect to any of the matters specified in the Federal Legislative List. 13. Removal of prisoners and accused persons from one Province to another Province. 14. Preventive detention for reasons connected with the maintenance of public order, or the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the community; persons subjected to such detention. 15. Persons subjected to preventive detention under Federal authority. 16. Measures to combat certain offences committed in connection with matters concerning the Federal and Provincial Governments and the establishment of a police force for that purpose. 17. Arms, firearms and ammunition. 18. Explosives. 19. Opium, so far as regards cultivation and manufacture. 20. Drugs and medicines. 21. Poisons and dangerous drugs. 22. Prevention of the extension from one Province to another of infectious or contagious diseases or pests affecting men, animals or plants. 23. Mental illness and mental retardation, including places for the reception or treatment of the mentally ill and mentally retarded. 24. Environmental pollution and ecology. 25. Population planning and social welfare.

Bargad: Working Paper 10 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment 26. Welfare of labor; conditions of labor, provident funds; employer's liability and workmen's compensation, health insurance including invalidity pensions, old age pensions. 27. Trade unions; industrial and labor disputes. 28. The setting up and carrying on of labor exchanges, employment information bureaus and training establishments. 29. Boilers. 30. Regulation of labor and safety in mines, factories and oil- fields. 31. Unemployment insurance. 32. Shipping and navigation on inland waterways as regards mechanically propelled vessels, and the rule of the road on such waterways; carriage of passengers and goods on inland waterways. 33. Mechanically propelled vehicles. 34. Electricity. 35. Newspapers, books and printing presses. 36. Evacuee property. 37. Ancient and historical monuments, archaeological sites and remains. 38. Curriculum, syllabus, planning, policy, centres of excellence and standards of education. 39. Islamic education. 40. Zakat. 41. Production, censorship and exhibition of cinematograph films. 42. Tourism. 43. Legal medical and other professions. 43A. Auqaf. 44. Fees in respect of any of the matters in this List, but not including fees taken in any court. 45. Inquiries and statistics for the purpose of any of the matters in this List. 46. Offences against laws with respect to any of the matters in this List; jurisdiction and powers of all courts except the Supreme Court, with respect to any of the matters in this List. 47. Matters incidental or ancillary to any matter enumerated in this List.

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Annexure B: Implementation Commission9

The commission comprises Senator Raza Rabbani as Chairman, Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar as Deputy Chairman, Senator Afrasiab Khattak (ANP), Senator Rahmatullah Kakar JUI(F), Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, MNA PPP(S), Syed Naveed Qamar, Dr. Muhammad Farooq Sattar, MQM, Senator Dr Abdul Malik, BNP, and Senator Abdul Razzaq A. Thahim, PML(F). The commission may co-opt experts, serving or retired members of the civil service or any other person for a specified purpose and time on such terms and conditions as it may deem fit, with prior approval of the federal government. The commission shall have the powers to make or pass such directions, orders, undertake proceedings or require the making of amendments to regulations, enactments, notifications, rules or orders as may be necessary to further the objectives of clause 8 of Article 270(AA) of the Constitution and in this regard require the attendance of any official of the Federal or Provincial Governments or the Divisions or the Attached Departments/Offices. The execution authority of the Implementation Commission shall vest in the chairman who shall be the overall in charge of the commission and responsible for supervising its business and affairs, including implementation of the objectives, policies, decisions and directives of the commission either directly or through the officers of the federal and provincial governments, the divisions and the attached departments/offices. According to the term of reference the commission shall perform such functions as may be necessary for the implementation of clause 8 of Article 270(AA) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and such other steps needed for the implementation of the Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act, 2010. The commission would examine the policy, programmes, capacity building and other measures that are required to be taken by the federal government and/or the provincial governments for the implementation of the devolution process. It will review all laws, rules and regulations being affected as a consequence of this transition. The commission will create and monitor the mechanism and institutional procedures required to complete the process of devolution by 30 June, 2011. It will access the financial implications of such devolution and to provide guidance for financial mechanism that will make it sustainable. The commission will review and examine the existing administrative structures at the level of the federal government relating to the subjects being devolved as a result of omission of the Concurrent Legislative List from the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution, other related Articles/Provisions and to suggest a mechanism for a smooth transition to the provinces. The commission will take any or all such actions and steps which may be necessary to perform the functions as specified in Paras 5(i) to 5(vi) above. The commission shall submit bi-annual reports to parliament on the progress of implementation of its objectives.

18th amendment: implementation commission formed. (2010, May 5). Pak Tribune, Retrieved from http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.shtml?227181

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Annexure C: 15 Principles of National Youth Policy (2009), Pakistan

1. Reinforce sense of Pride, Awareness and Motivation. a. Reinforce the sense of pride by creating awareness about our history, heritage and achievements. b. To expose youth to works and examples of high achievers in the world in various walks of life and to instill a passion to excel and achieve excellence. c. Develop amongst the youth an international outlook, a desire to compete, an insight into other cultures and desire to learn lessons from achievements and errors of others. 2. Promote National Integration Promote: i. National integration and harmony, ii. ii. Mutual friendship, iii. Tolerance, understanding and values. iv. Social interactions. 3. Enabling Prospects of Income Generation for the Youth. (Harnessing the Youth Dividend). Consistent with the policies of the Government for rapid economic growth which will create opportunities of income generation for Pakistani Youth, following specific measures be taken: a. Skill Development Undertake target oriented programmes for development of new and enhancement of existing skill to cater for the need of the youth in the specific area/regions (e.g. coastal, agriculture, industrial, urban, rural areas etc.). These programmes will also envisage training for foreign job markets where Pakistani youth can find jobs. b. Entrepreneurships Assist and support the youth in establishing self-employment businesses and start up of new companies/ventures. c. Micro Finance Provide financial resources for small scale income generation ventures. d. Internship and Job Counseling Enhance internship programmes and provide job counseling in collaboration with corporate sector and universities etc. 4. Address Issues of Marginalized and Vulnerable Groups of Youth Eradicate disparities related to access to social and economic opportunities and resources for youth development by adopting rights base approaches. 5. Support Character Building Inspire the youth with: i. Islamic values ii. Ideology of Pakistan, aspiration for Pakistan iii. Sense of good citizenship, high standards of morality iv. Discipline v. Respect for basic human values, laws and religions. vi. Educate, motivate & guide against extremism, terrorism, anti-state & inhuman activities.

Bargad: Working Paper 13 Provincial Autonomy & the Implications of 18th Amendment 6. Promotion of Sports and Recreation: Patronize sports and recreation activities, sports competition, expansion of sports facilities at all administrative levels on sustainable basis with special emphasis for young females. 7. Academic and Intellectual Development. a. Take steps to promote scholarship, enhance availability and access to academic material, participation in conferences and undertake talent forming programmes. b. Special emphasis be given to mainstreaming of youth studying in Madrassas. c. Youth will be given representations in Think Tanks, policy formation and implementation fora. 8. Youth Health Create awareness about responsible and safe behaviour, provide youth friendly and health care counseling and guidance facilities. 9. Social Volunteerism Youth will be encouraged to undertake voluntary social service. 10. Incentives for Talented and High Performing Youth Talented and high performing youth will be given recognition reward and incentive at the national level. Efforts be made to motivate and attract them towards service for the nation. 11. Youth Marriage, Family and Life Skills Facilitating the youth (above 18 years) in the formation and planning of a healthy family on a sustainable basis. 12. Youth Mentoring Supporting and guiding the youth in identifying their potentials, overcoming their failures, adopting the traits of good citizens and boosting their morale for high achievements in life. 13. Special Youth Special consideration will be given to promote the participation of special and handicapped youth in all activities. 14. Balancing the Gender Imbalance Work towards gender equity and provide greater opportunities and decent environment for the female youth to play their role in socio-economic development of the country. 15. Youth in Prison Special Programme for rehabilitation, mentoring, training and education and incentives for youth in prison will be evolved so that their time in the prison is utilized to become good citizens capable of integrating in social economic activities.

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Annexure D: Youth Bulge in Pakistan

Age Both Sexes Population 21,285,186 Male Population Female Population Percent Both Sexes 11.4

15-19

10,971,574

10,313,612

20-24

19,326,754

9,995,643

9,331,111

10.3

25-29

15,982,233

8,301,845

7,680,388

8.5

56,594,173

29,269,062

27,325,111

30.2