Background- Why do we need a regional planning district (RPD)?
RPD can best be described as the most effective tool to decentralize national institutions by addressing and resolving critical services on a regional level. There is already a tehsil/district functional mechanism in Pakistan that is working towards this goal but such a system needs revamping with enlarged capacity to address all the local and regional issues. In a recent report by World Bank ” Pakistan’s social indicators are lower than other countries with similar per capita income. That means that improving service delivery is a pressing task for the government, and devolution can help.” Data suggests that Pakistan and international consultants such as World Bank and Asia Development Bank are working hard towards developing a decentralized policy. We hope that suggestions made in this report would complement the existing efforts of Pakistan Government and other agencies.

RPD’s Benifits
Virtually all the problems that Pakistan is facing namely poverty,education,economy,health care,infrastructure, & law and order will eventually have to be resolved in cities,villages,and rural areas of Pakistan. With Pakistan’s population reaching 170 Million the need to react quickly is critical and can best be done at the local/regional level. Thus, regional councils or regional planning districts can play a vital role in not only addressing those issues more efficiently but are more suitable to implement and manage those issues.Members of the National Assembly, State representatives, Local Nazims and other local business leaders can coordinate all their needs thru their RPD.

Regional Planning District is an Integrated Service Delivery Mechanism. One Stop Service

Functions
A regional planning district is a multi-service entity with defined service boundaries. It serves as the official agency to plan, deliver, and manage a variety of functions.It is basically a clearinghouse for delivery of all services to the district. RPD’s primary responsibility is to develop a comprehensive strategic plan to deliver services in the following areas:
1) Identifying poverty areas and implementing poverty solutions
2) Managing all schools within its boundaries
3) Plan and upgrade all infrastructure within its boundaries
4) Analyze economic resources within its boundaries and work with state and federal government to attract appropriate industries to the district
5) Work with all villages and towns within its jurisdiction at consensus building, problem solving, social and environmental issues. One efficient tool that has been very successful in the U.S. is to invite and appoint all stakeholders within the district as part of Steering Committees for recommendations.
6) Plans and manages all health care facilities within its boundaries.

RPD Composition
A Regional Planning District (RPD) is administered by an Executive Director (ED) appointed by the Chief Minister of the Province and confirmed by the State Parliament. The ED is a technocrat with diversified background in city planning, education, and social services. It should not be a political appointee. There should be a screening committee formed to evaluate resumes of individuals for this position. The Screening committee can then recommend the final candidate to the Chief Minister who may refer such candidate to the State Parliament for confirmation. The Regional Planning District Coordinator reports to the State or Province Coordinator of Regional Planning. Each RPD should have a minimum of seven (7) divisions to accomplish Federal objectives. These divisions are as follows:
1) Planning & Operations ( includes city planners,engineers, GIS specialists, education specialists,health care specialists, and security personnel). Planning Department is reponsible for preparing a master plan of the district, gathers all the district data on population, census, poverty, economy, education, health care, agriculture & food distribution,infrastructure, & law and order. (Note: all master plans must be approved with local consensus
2) Education Department is responsible for creating a school district and working out details of implementing school programs according to the master plan
3) HealthCare Department carries out the management of health facilities for the entire district, develops nutrition programs for the kids, recommends needs for new health clinics to the ED.
4) Law and Order Department collects security data for the district and updates the master plan accordingly. It also supervises district law enforcement personnel.
5) Independent Judiciary for the district should also be closely housed near the RPD center
6) Infrastructure Department. We propose a trained public works corp to be deployed within this department to address all infrastructure needs in the district. This may include building health clinics for the poor, hospitals, schools,housing,sewer and water facilities, transportation system, and agriculture/food distribution needs.
7) Community Support/Coordination. This is the most important part of RPD’s. Professionally trained personnel from various RPD departments should be constantly involved in educating the public about what their RPD is doing and how they can help people. Public input at all levels is the most important and effective tool for the success of RPD’s. People must trust and respect their government and should have full confidence in the ability of their Regional Districts. RPD’s whould also work closely with other adjacent RPD’s on project coordination. For example a roadway going thru several RPD’s should have an InterRPD

take force to develop a broader understanding of how such projects can be developed and maintained.

Budget for RPD’s
Federal and Provincial Governments must allocate sufficient start up resources to implement RPD’s across the country.

Summary
As shown in the above map we recommend a minimum of 3 RPD’s per province with 2 additional RPD’s for the Northern Area and Kashmir. We recocmmend FATA area should be integrated with The 3 Northwest Frontier Province RPD’s.
FAST TRACK IMPLEMENTATION OF RPD’S IS RECOMMENDED-PAKISTAN PARLIAMENT IS THE BEST PLATFORM FOR SUCH A DEBATE AND ENACTMENT OF RPD LEGISLATION
We sincerely urge our leaders of all political and religous parties to join hands, set aside their differences, and make a bold and decisive national commitment to the implementation of RPD’s. ActionPakistan strongly beleives that RPD’s (if implemented with a full national commitment) will take Pakistan to a different level in a very short time. However, RPD functions must never be politicized regardless of who is in power. For RPD’s to be effective, they must remain a professional merit based organization at all levels. It is also recoemmended that RPD’s should be closely coordinated with Pakistan’s Armed forces for logistical and technical support where necessary. For assistance in setting up an RPD or developing a more detailed plan please contact us at aman@actionpakistan.com. We also encourage all readers to register with this project and submit their input.

By Syed Aman/ Executive Director-ActionPakistan.com
Syed Aman is a former City Planner for San Antonio with over 30 years
experience in city and regional planning and management of one of the largest
School  Districts in Texas.  Syed Aman currently serves as the CEO of Centra Corporation,
a Texas based Planning and Engineering Consulting firm.

According to the recent data compiled by the United Nations, Pakistan’s Human Development Index stands at 0.56. It is pretty close to Bangladesh,Yemen, and Nepal. It ranks 139 out of 179 countries reported in this analysis.

History will tell us that poverty is one of the key factors that has caused Governments to fail. . Pakistan is no exception. Poverty is not just about providing food, clothing, & shelter. There are a lot more indicators that are needed to improve poverty such as education, stable employment with decent wages, health care, law and order security, minimum housing standards, & decent recreation environment All these factors when combined could have a dramatic affect on reducing poverty in Pakistan. My research indicates that substantial work has already taken place in these areas  and a lot more is underway by the current NGO’s and the federal government. However, poverty solutions are still part of the six other prerequisite issues identified in this forum that must be addressed collectively and comprehensively. So lets discuss  solution.

Prioritize Poverty Areas (MALA Index) and Declare Jihad on Poverty

As part of this debate I recommend developing a minimum acceptable living standard index for Pakistan (MALA index for short). The MALA index is a composite index that will tell us how to prioritize poverty areas.

1)   MALA index -  severe ( living conditions severe, lack of decent sanitary facilities, no health facilities, law and order breakdown, high unemployment or extremely low wages. )
2)   MALA index-  medium (living conditions poor, marginal sanitary facilities, low quality health facilities, law and order breakdown, low wages )
3)   MALA index - minimal (marginal living conditions,marginal sanitary facilities, marginal health facilities, marginal law and order, minimal wages)

City Planners can play a major role in combating Poverty
City & Regional Planners can use a MALA index to target any area where they find poverty and prioritize the severity of the poverty by using a poverty index such as MALA.  Implementing poverty initiatives must be carried out on local and regional level.  The Regional Planning Districts (RPD’s) as discussed in other sections would be the most appropriate means of attacking poverty with real results.

Quality Health Care delivery for the poor & Health Insurance
We recommend Med Clinics with uniform standards to be set up across the country on a regional level. State Governments should take the lead by incorporating health clinics thru their regional planning districts. Health Care for the poor children, the elderly, and all other poverty segments of our society should be a national priority. Government subsidized health insurance cards should be given to all the poor people who otherwise cannot afford health insurance thru their employers.

Redistribution of Wealth and Stimulus Packages for the Poor Areas
Goverment should take serious measures on developing grants and financial aid packages for the poor areas. The MALA index should be used to implement financial investments in these neighborhoods. Small businesses should be given grants and loans to expand their businesses. There are many diversified tools that can be used to redistribute wealth.

Summary
City & Regional Planners can use a MALA index to target any area where they find poverty and prioritize the severity of the poverty by using a poverty index such as MALA.  Implementing poverty initiatives must be carried out on local and regional level.  The Regional Planning Districts (RPD’s) as discussed in other sections would be the most appropriate means of attacking poverty with real results. While the nation waits for such RPD decisions, we must implement minimum nutrition food intakes for the needy children, the poor elderly citizens, and poor women.  A substantial population of Pakistan is deprived of the minimum nutritious food that is absolutely needed for a healthy population.  The second highest priority for Pakistan is health care delivery for the poor. We recommend Med Clinics with uniform standards to be set up across the country on a regional level.  Housing for the poor is the third highest priority. The National Government must adopt minimum acceptable living standards for families.  RPD’s are the best means of implementing decent and affordable or subsidized housing projects for the poor in all areas of Pakisan.  These are just starters. This debate must be taken serioosly by all of us. I urge readers and all government and other scholars to participate in this debate on how we can truly declare jihad on Poverty.

Pakistan is one of only 12 world countries that spends less than 2% of its GNP on education.The World Bank reports that the average Pakistani boy receives only five years of schooling; the average girl just 2.5 years. The U.S. Agency for International Development claims that only two thirds of Pakistani children aged 5-9 are ever enrolled in school and only one-third will complete the fifth grade. Pakistan’s adult literacy rate is about 40% and is much lower among females.The U.N. Development Programme’s 2004 Human Development Report assigns Pakistan the lowest “education index” of any country outside Africa. (See World Bank Group, “Pakistan Country Report, September 2004; USAID Grant Agreement No. 391-004-01; UNDP Human Development Report 2004 at [http://hdr.undp.org/reports/global/2004/].

Pakistan’s Future
Pakistan’s future as a prosperous and competitive nation would depend on how much investment the nation is going to commit towards educational reforms.  There are two major issues that are critical in formulating Pakistan’s educational plan. 1) National Policy commitment and appropriate allocation of investments 2) Strong regional control of education and other core issues identified in this forum as part of a regional planning district.  Lets look at some specifics.

Role of the National Government in Education
-National Government must develop appropriate standards for public schools. This includes minimum acceptable size of the classrooms, teacher/student ratio, technology labs, minimum acceptable physical fitness facilities, and cafeteria standards. Recommended curriculum (academic & technology) for elementary, secondary, and intermediate schools must be standardized for all public schools across the country.
-Minimum acceptable standards for post secondary education in all specialty areas.
-Financial resources must also be planned for all public schools across the country
-Standards for teacher certification must also be developed at the national level
-Federal Education Department must also monitor educational programs by means of Federal Education Auditors for each State.
-We recommend a federal minister of education to implement these provisions with coordination with each state and regions.

Role of the the States or Provinces in Education
State Chief Minister must appoint a State Education coordinator to implement federal policies. Federally approved regional planning Districts as discussed in this forum are the appropriate jurisdictions for carrying out federally mandated standards. The regional planning districts will also be authorized to plan, develop, and appropriate school budgets. All upgrading projects or new construction for schools must also be done at the regional level with support from the Federal and State offices. Each Regional Planning District will have an education coordinator who will report to the State and federal Authorities.

Regulating Private Schools
All private schools must follow the minimum federal standards for education. Private schools must also provide comprehensive details on their programs and facilities. All substandard private schools must be given sufficient time to either upgrade their programs/facilities or must be phased out.

SUMMARY
All national Leaders should stand together and address the nation.  Give the nation some confidence. Its about our Children, our elderly, and all of us
All national political and religious leaders must set aside their differences and agree on UNIFORM NATIONAL SECURITY GOALS irregardless of who comes into power. Such goals must be based on their commitment of protecting the Constitution of Pakistan.  Security for any nation in the west from Europe to United States has never been compromised by any leader. They have always been committed to protecting their national security.  There is no debate on this issue.  Breach of national security, insurgency, challenge of the Government’s writ are not issues that need debating. The means of handling such issues is a debate however that does require a joint strategy. We urge leaders to jointly develop clear strategy with close coordination with Pakistan’s Armed Forces and address the nation together.

How we handle our security problems in Pakistan is a decision that is being watched and covered by people and media around the globe.  Lets make a firm decisive decision and the entire nation must stand behind whatever decision the government takes.  The children of Pakistan deserve a peaceful future to prosper. Our leaders owe this to them. They will be held accountable for not taking Pakistan out of this crisis.  If we succeed ( and I truly believe that we will) then the leaders of today will always be considered as heros for the children of tomorrow.

Here is a summary from a recent report from the World Bank on Pakistan’s Infrastructure: Report Summary: (February 8, 2008) Pakistan suffers from a dearth of infrastructure in the water, irrigation, power, and transport sectors. The report calls for  urgent measures to strengthen the country’s capacity to undertake major infrastructure projects. Lack of adequate irrigation, power, and transport infrastructure hinders growth and is affecting all sectors of the economy,” said Yusupha Crookes, World Bank Country Director for Pakistan.

In the current environment, the report concludes that the construction industry does not have the capacity to deliver the Government’s planned infrastructure program. Its analysis found that contractors keep getting work even though they lack the capacity to perform.  The business environment has delivery constraints, planned projects often take longer to complete, and even longer to achieve a financial close. Issues such as poor project planning, insufficient programming, and weak implementation are common.

Role of the Federal Government
Virtually every area around the country is in dire need of infrastructure upgrade. Federal Government must take the lead in developing infrastructure policies and unified standards but must delegate project implementation to States and regional planning districts.

Need for Bold Action- a national Public Works Corp
Executive Government in coordination with the parliament should consider adopting a national Public Work Corp to address all infrastructure and emergency issues. Such a corp would be drafted from each state and would work directly under the auspices of the State’s Infrastructure Director and the regional planning districts. The Corp must also receive coordination from the Pakistan Army Corp of Engineers specially in logistics. Without having a skilled workforce we cannot even think of developing infrastructure projects. The Public Works Corp would create thousands of jobs and would be the catalyst in upgrading the country’s infrastructure. The Corp would work on all projects ranging from road construction, bridges, housing, drainage, sewage treatment plants, alternative energy projects such as windmills and solar collectors, health facilities, schools, and other emergency needs of the country.

Recommendations:
1) National Health Policy to support minimum standards for health care facilities. Standardized health clinics across the country must be established with virtually identical services. National Government must take full responsibility to assure that health clinics and hospitals are operating with minimum acceptable standards in serving both urban and rural areas.
2) Health Care Delivery to be integrated with the Regional Planning Districts. Similar to other core issues addressed in this forum such as poverty, infrastructure, education etc  HealthCare facilities must also be planned and delivered on a regional basis. We recommend a Health Care Director for each Regional Planning District.

Federal Executive Government
1) We recommend change from President/ Prime Minister form of Government to Prime Minister/Deputy PM
Pakistan has a parliamentary form of Government with mixed power sharing provisions. We propose instead a much reduced and more efficient structure: We reocmmend the Parliament to introduce amendements to the constitution for phasing out the Presdiency/ Governor slots and instead authorize just one head of state- the prime minister. Prime Minister (to be elected for a three year term with one reelection for another 3 year term. Maximum of 6 years for a prime minister. Parties must nominate other candidates in future elections)

2) We recommend new election laws for future governments.
We suggest new election laws in the future whereby each party contesting elections must nominate a Prime Minister & a Deputy Prime Minister  so that people will know upfront as to who the candidates are. We must develop a government & a political framework that best suits Pakistan. We must not follow others.

3) Cabinet positions
For the current executive government we propose the following: 11 Minister positions as compared to the approximately 24 minister positions currently listed. We suggest the 11 cabinet positions to be nominated by the President and confirmed by the parliament. These 11 positions  to include:
Foreign Minister
Defence Minister
Interior Minister (security & law enforcement)
Health & Human Services
Infrastructure (census, housing, urban development, transportation, rural development, planning)
Energy & Environment
Education
Justice
Agriculture
Treasury
Commerce
(All other important services are suggested to be merged in the above offices as departments)

State Executive Government
We propose only one elected head of the State Government . . Each State should have 9 executive departments (exception of Foreign and Defence) with the same titles as the Federal Government listed above. We recommend no ministers at the state level but instead the Chief Minister  to nominate technocrats to lead each State Department. All State nominations to be confirmed by the elected State Parliament.

Interior (security & law enforcement)
Health & Human Services
Infrastructure (Census, Housing, Urban development,transportation, rural development, planning)
Energy & Environment
Education
Justice
Agriculture
Treasury
Commerce
The State or the Province Departments should be headed by technocrats, all reporting to the Chief Minister  and must work in coordination with the Federal corresponding Ministry. For example a State Director of Infrastructure for Sindh to work closely with the Federal Minister of Infrastructure and Vice Versa.

Regional Planning Districts (RPD’s)
We recommend each state to adopt 3 RPD’s.  State coordinators would oversee the RPD’s. Please review our special section on the composition of an RPD.

Cities

Large Cities in Pakistan such as Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Hyderabad, Quetta should be set aside as seperate metro districts. Elected city bodies should appoint a professional city manager with sweeping powers to control the City’s affairs. Such a Manager would have the authority to oversee all local infrastructure services such as water, electric, transportation, health services, city planning, and security. Cities should appoint their own Chief of Police with full coordination with the State and Federal Government. A police Chief would not be a political appointee but a trained police officer selected on merits. All appointments in the City Government must be technocrats selected on merits by the City’s Human Services Department. A local Committee should oversee local appointments recommended by the City Manager. A local City Council will have the right to hire/remove a city manager.

Villages
Villages should be evaluated on a village by village basis per each region. We recommend a regional planning district concept to oversee small towns and villages. The federal government to delineate 3 regional planning districts for each State. Regional Planning Districts will be authorized to gather all data on its region and coordinate and provide all necessary assistance to each village within their jurisdiction. The regional planning districts will report to the Governor and all the State Directors.

The current Government of Pakistan has adopted a comprehensive program of macroeconomic stabilization and sustainable development. This memorandum sets out Pakistan’s economic and financial policies for November 2008–June 2010, to be supported by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under a 23-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA). While the Government looks at ways to adjust Pakistan’s economy, there are important measures that should not be overlooked as important priorities:

1) A comprehensive export strategy for Pakistan. We recommend a strong government backed export portal that can identify all possible suppliers in one marketplace. Substantial funds should be allocated to finance export companies to market their products overseas. We recommend Pakistan exporters to more aggressively develop strategic alliances with international counterparts. There should be a continuous exhibition program financed by the Government and various States for exporters to display Pakistani products overseas. We recommend contacting all Pakistani Cultural associations in the United states and Europe for assistance and support. Exporters should look for both supplying their products and for international companies to invest in Pakistan as part of joint ventures. Just look at where China was in 1979. That was not too long ago. Since then China/ Hong Kong have developed a vary aggressive export promotion programme that must be duplicated in Pakistan on a fastrack. It is ActionPakistan’s opinion that exports and investments/joint ventures would create an outstanding opportunity for Pakistani manufacturers and exporters.

2) Infrastructure investment

Similar to what U.S. did in the great depression and what the current Obama Government just started, we highly recommend Pakistan to develop a comprehensive infrastructure plan to improve roads, dams, canals,sanitary & sewer , power lines, alternative energy , and a range of other projects. The National Public Work Corp (NPWC) as discussed elsewhere in this forum would create tremendous opportunities for young professionals and will provide jobs for the unskilled labor force while giving them skilled training.

3) Micro development loans
Government should offer loans and matching  funds to all households and businesses who want to either expand their business or remodel/expand their properties. This is a great economic stimulant. It creates a vibrancy in the marketplace and adds confidence to the economic environment.

Economy is the core of what a nation is able to do. Without a sound economy, no projects can be implemented.  There are many more solutions to strengthening Pakistan’s economy. We welcome this debate and hope that our viewers will actively participate on other solutions.