13
A Review of Annual Reports Exploring Transparency in Pakistan: Supervisor
A Review of Annual Reports
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan:
Supervisor
Introduction
Significance of annual report/year book cannot be denied as it highlights the activities, accomplishments and performance of an organization / department for the previous financial year. It is also an authentic source of information for the general public. Annual report/year book is considered as an important tool to ensure transparency and accountability in Pakistan as under Rules 25 and 26 of Rules of Business 1973 (Federal Government) Revised, it is mandatory for all public bodies (government ministries/divisions/departments) to prepare their annual report/year book covering details of their targets, activities, achievements and progress during the preceding financial year for the information of the Cabinet and general public.
Above in view, publication of annual report/year book and placement of the same on websites by the respective public bodies is also recognition of the citizens' Right to Information (RTI) in the country. By doing so, citizens are able to monitor the work of government bodies and contribute to their transparency and accountability in
1order to enhance good governance. Article 19-A of Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973 recognizes Freedom of Information (FOI/RTI) as a fundamental right of every citizen.
In this backdrop, Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP) conducted a preliminary research study focusing broadly on the following two aspects:
· Desk analysis/review of availability of annual reports/year books and information related to FOI/RTI laws on websites of government ministries/divisions/departments.
· Content analysis of the annual reports/year books for year 2012-13 as per key features of international best practices.
Objectives of the Research
Following are some of the key objectives of the research:
· To highlight the importance of timely publication of annual reports/year books by public bodies under the observance and implementation Rules 25 and 26 of Rules of Business 1973 (Federal Government) Revised.
· To highlight the significance of proactive disclosure of information in the shape of uploading of annual report/year book and FOI/RTI related information/material on respective websites by federal ministries/divisions and attached departments.
Research Methodology
The scope of this research study is limited to 56 federal public bodies including 37 federal government ministries/divisions, 11 attached government departments and 8 regulatory authorities (list enclosed in Annexure A). Annual reports/year books for the financial year 2012-13 were part of this study. Letters, followed up with reminders, were written to various federal government ministries/ divisions/departments with requests to share their annual report/year book for the financial year 2012-13. Content analysis of the annual reports/year books was done based on the following 10 key features of annual report/year book as per international best practices: Vision, Mission, Mandate, Board of Directors/Governors, Organizational Structure, Objectives, Performance/Achievements, Audits, Future Strategy/Actions and any other additional
1 Article 19-A states: “Every citizen shall have the right to have access to information in all matters of public importance
1 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
information. Desk review of the availability of soft copies of annual reports/year books and material related to FOI/RTI, information about designation of public information officers (PIOs) etc. on websites of federal public bodies was also done.
2Findings of the Research
Key research findings of this study are as under:
· Out of total 56 public bodies, only 40 responded to CRCP's requests. Out of these 40 public bodies, only 26 shared their respective annual report/year book for 2012-13 whereas 14 did not share their annual reports/year books. 11 public bodies out of these 14 informed CRCP that their annual reports/year books were in process of printing/compilation; whereas, 3 public bodies conveyed that they did not publish their annual reports.
st· Furthermore, 18 out of the 26 public bodies shared their reports before 1 Soft Reminder sent by CRCP
stand 7 public bodies shared their reports after the 1 Soft Reminder. It is worth mentioning that CRCP sent two reminders to public bodies after every 15 days interval. So, the public bodies were given a reasonable time of 30 days to respond.
· Out of the 26 public bodies, only 1 department published its report in both English and Urdu languages, whereas, 25 public bodied published their reports in English language only. It was observed that out of 56 public bodies only 17 published their annual reports regularly on annual basis.
· During the study, it was also observed that among the 56 public bodies only 5 (Cabinet Division, Ministry of Law, Justice and Human Rights, Supreme Court of Pakistan and National Accountability Bureau) gave any information about FOI/RTI laws, guidelines and names of Public Information Officers (PIOs) and placed any data related to FOI/RTI on their websites.
· Content analysis showed that out of 26 public bodies all the 26 gave details about their performance/achievements during the year 2012-13, 25 mentioned their mandate/functions and 23 provided information about organizational structure/chart. However, only 11 stated their mission, 8 highlighted the vision, 8 gave details of board of directors/governors/members, 8 included their objectives, 8 mentioned other information regarding major projects and costs, budget position/allocation, expenditures and procurement activities, 6 revealed future actions and 3 public bodies provided details of audits/accounts. Details are given in the figure below:
Figure 1. Key Features mentioned in 26 Annual Reports / Year Books 2012-13
2 Detailed findings in tabular form are available as Table 1.
2 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
· Even after the passage of 12 months or so, out of 56 public bodies only 26 departments were able to 3prepare and publish their annual reports/year books for the financial year 2012-13.
· It was observed that the delay in the publication of annual report/year book 2012-13 was actually 4
causing deferment in the publication and compilation of annual reports/year books 2013-14.
Conclusion
Non-completion of annual reports/year books 2012-13 by the federal ministries/divisions/departments, even after a passage of one year or so, is a clear violation of Rules 25 and 26 of Rules of Business 1973 (Federal Government) Revised. It also shows the lack of interest of the concerned government ministries and departments and their inability to state their achievements/successes for the preceding financial year. It seems that there is a great lack of accountability and a weak monitoring process prevailing in public bodies including the Cabinet Division.
Furthermore, non-availability of annual reports/year books and material related to FOI/RTI on websites of the 5public bodies is against the international best practices and denial of citizens' fundamental right to
information. It is also a violation of Article 19-A of Constitution of Pakistan and section 5 and section 10 (1) & (2) of FOI Ordinance 2002.
Recommendations
· In order to ensure transparency and accountability, it is suggested that timely publication of annual reports/year books should be ensured by respective heads of concerned public bodies. This being a case of maladministration, Federal Ombudsman should also intervene to take notice of this grave situation and should constantly monitor the performance of public bodies in conjunction with Cabinet Division.
· Annual reports/year books should follow international standards especially the financial statements of the public bodies should be integral part of it.
· All the departments should place soft copies of these reports on their websites for easy access of the general public.
· It is not mandatory for government entities to publish annual reports/year books in both English and Urdu languages, however, publication in Urdu can help ordinary citizens of Pakistan to understand these easily.
3 As per rules, annual report/year book should be published within the 3 months of completion of financial year. In this way, annual report for the year 2012-13 was to be published by the end of September 2013. 4 This year, in order to complete its annual report/year book, Cabinet Division set May 1, 2014 as the deadline. In this context, on March 5, 2014, government directed all ministries and government departments to submit their reports till March 15, 2014 which was extended to April 15, 2014 and later as May 1, 2014. However, even after passage of 3 more months of May, June and July 2014, the government was still unable to speed up the work of the public bodies to complete their reports for the financial year 2013-14.5 See figure 2 for details.
3 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
Fig
ure
2. D
etai
ls o
f P
ub
lic
Bod
ies
hav
ing
On
lin
e A
nn
ual
Rep
orts
an
d M
ater
ial
rela
tin
g to
Rig
ht
to I
nfo
rmat
ion
(R
TI)
Availability of Annual Report on
Website
Availability of RTIRelated Material on
Website
CABIN
TE DIV
ISIO
N
COM
MU
NIC
ATION
S DIV
ISIO
N
DEFEN
SE DIV
ISIO
N
DEFEN
SE PRO
DU
CTION
DIV
ISIO
N
FINA
NCE D
IVIS
ION
INFO
RMATIO
N, B
ROA
DCA
STING
& N
ATION
AL H
ERITA
GE D
IVIS
ION
INTER P
ROV
INCIA
L CO
ORD
INATIO
N D
IVIS
ION
MIN
ISTRY O
F SCIE
NCE &
TECH
NO
LOG
Y
NA
RCOTIC
S CO
NTRO
L DIV
ISIO
N
NATIO
NA
L ACCO
UN
TABIL
ITY B
UREA
U (N
AB)
NATIO
NA
L ELECTRIC
PO
WER R
EGU
LATORY A
UTH
ORIT
Y (NEPRA
)
NATIO
NA
L FO
OD
, SECU
RITY A
ND
RESEA
RCH D
IVIS
ION
NATIO
NA
L INSTIT
UTE O
F HIS
TORIC
AL &
CU
LTU
RAL R
ESEARCH
OIL
AN
D G
AS R
EGU
LATORY A
UTH
ORIT
Y (OG
RA)
OV
ERSEES PA
KIS
TAN
IS A
ND
HRD
PAK
ISTA
N T
ELECOM
MU
NIC
ATION
AU
THO
RITIE
S (PTA
)
PARLIA
MEN
TARY A
FFAIR
S DIV
ISIO
N
PLAN
NIN
G D
EVELO
PMEN
T AN
D R
EFORM
DIV
ISIO
N
RAIL
WAY
S DIV
ISIO
N
RELIGIO
US A
FFAIR
S AN
D IN
TERFAIT
H H
ARM
ON
Y DIV
ISIO
N
REVEN
UE D
IVIS
ION
STATE BA
NK
OF P
AK
ISTA
N
STATISTIC
S DIV
ISIO
N
SUPREM
E CO
URT O
F PA
KIS
TAN
TEXTIL
E IND
USTRY D
IVIS
ION
WA
FAQ
I MO
HTA
SIB (O
MBU
DSM
AN
) SECRETA
RIAT
YE
SN
O
Note:
Onl
y th
ose
26 p
ubli
c bo
dies
whi
ch p
ubli
shed
Ann
ual
Rep
orts
201
2-13
are
inc
lude
d in
the
cha
rt. T
here
was
one
pub
lic
body
(M
inis
try
of L
aw, J
usti
ce a
nd
Hum
an R
ight
s) w
hich
did
not
hav
e an
ann
ual
repo
rt f
or 2
012-
13 b
ut i
t ha
d so
me
info
rmat
ion
rela
ted
to R
TI
on i
ts w
ebsi
te.
4 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
Ta
ble
1- C
on
ten
t A
na
lysis
of
the A
nn
ua
l R
ep
ort
s f
rom
56
Pu
blic B
od
ies
Sr. No.
Na
me
of
the
Min
istr
y / D
ivis
ion
Status
Co
nte
nt
An
aly
sis
Mandate/Function
Mission
Vision
Board of Directors/Governors
Organizational Structure
Co
nte
nts
of
Rep
ort
Objectives/ Targets
Performance during the year
Audits
Frequency of Publishing
Future Actions
Language of Publication
1
Cab
inet
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
No
Y
es
For
war
d,
Org
aniz
atio
n,
Fun
ctio
n, 7
Par
ts
No
Y
es
No
R
egul
ar
No
E
ngli
sh
2
Co
mm
unic
atio
ns
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
No
Y
es
For
war
d, 6
cha
pte
rs
Yes
Y
es
No
No
E
ngli
sh
3
Def
ense
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
Y
es
For
war
d b
y S
ecre
tary
, 16
Par
ts
No
Y
es
No
No
E
ngli
sh
4
Def
ense
Pro
duct
ion
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
No
Y
es
Mes
sage
fro
m M
inis
ter,
For
war
d b
y S
ecre
tary
,
9
Par
ts
Yes
Y
es
No
R
egul
ar
Yes
E
ngli
sh
5
Fin
ance
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
Y
es
18
Par
ts
No
Y
es
No
R
egul
ar
No
E
ngli
sh
6
Info
rmat
ion,
B
road
cast
ing
&
Nat
iona
l H
erit
age
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
Y
es
For
war
d, 2
6 P
arts
N
o
Yes
N
o
N
o
Eng
lish
7
Inte
r P
rovi
ncia
l C
oord
inat
ion
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
No
Y
es
Mes
sage
fro
m M
inis
ter,
F
orw
ard
fro
m S
ecre
tary
, In
trod
ucti
on,
6 P
arts
, A
nne
xur
es
No
Y
es
No
R
egul
ar
No
E
ngli
sh
5 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
8
Min
istr
y o
f S
cien
ce &
T
echn
olo
gy
Yes
Y
es
N
o
No
Y
es
Mes
sage
fro
m M
inis
ter,
F
orw
ard
fro
m S
ecre
tary
, 16
P
arts
Y
es
Yes
N
o
N
o
Eng
lish
9
Nar
coti
cs C
ont
rol
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
Yes
Y
es
Mes
sage
s fr
om
Min
iste
r,
For
war
d,
5 P
arts
, Ann
exes
N
o
Yes
N
o
Reg
ular
N
o
Eng
lish
10
Nat
iona
l A
cco
unta
bil
ity
Bur
eau
(NA
B)
Yes
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
Ove
r V
iew
of
Yea
r 2
013,
M
essa
ge f
rom
Cha
irm
an,
Vis
ion
Mis
sio
n , M
anda
te,
9 C
hap
ters
No
Y
es
No
No
E
ngli
sh
11
Nat
iona
l E
lect
ric
Pow
er R
egula
tory
A
utho
rity
(N
EP
RA
) Y
es
Yes
Y
es
No
Y
es
Yes
4
mai
n P
arts
, 3
Ann
exes
N
o
Yes
Y
es
Reg
ular
N
o
Eng
lish
12
Nat
iona
l F
ood
, S
ecur
ity
and
Res
earc
h
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
No
Y
es
Mes
sage
s fr
om
Min
iste
r an
d S
ecre
tary
, Int
rodu
ctio
n,
ove
rvie
w,
3 P
arts
N
o
Yes
N
o
Reg
ular
Y
es
Eng
lish
13
Nat
iona
l In
stit
ute
of
His
tori
cal
& C
ult
ural
R
esea
rch
(Cen
ter
of
Exce
llen
ce)
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
No
N
o
17
Mai
n P
arts
, 5 A
nnex
es
Yes
Y
es
No
Ir
regu
lar
Yes
E
ngli
sh
14
Oil
and
Gas
R
egula
tory
Aut
hori
ty
(OG
RA
) Y
es
Yes
Y
es
No
Y
es
Yes
7
Par
ts
No
Y
es
No
R
egul
ar
Yes
E
ngli
sh
15
Ove
rsee
s P
akis
tanis
an
d H
RD
Y
es
Yes
N
o
Yes
N
o
Yes
Mes
sage
fro
m M
inis
ter,
F
orw
ard
by
Sec
reta
ry,
Exe
cuti
ve S
umm
ary,
5
Par
ts, T
able
s an
d G
raph
ics
No
Y
es
No
No
E
ngli
sh
16
Pak
ista
n
Tel
ecom
muni
cati
on
Aut
hori
ties
(P
TA
) Y
es
Yes
N
o
Yes
Y
es
No
PT
A D
ata
Dis
clai
mer
, The
A
utho
rity
, C
hair
man
's
Mes
sage
, E
xecu
tive
Su
mm
ary
, 5
Cha
pter
, 8
Ann
exur
es
Yes
Y
es
Yes
R
egul
ar
No
E
ngli
sh
17
Par
liam
enta
ry A
ffai
rs
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
Y
es
Mes
sage
fro
m M
inis
ter
of
Sta
tes,
For
war
d b
y S
ecre
tary
, 5
Cha
pter
s, A
ppen
dic
es
No
Y
es
No
R
egul
ar
No
E
ngli
sh
6 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
18
Pla
nnin
g D
evel
op
men
t an
d R
efo
rm D
ivis
ion
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
N
o
Yes
F
orw
ard,
Int
rod
ucti
on,
F
unct
ion
s, O
rgan
izat
ion,
3
Par
ts, A
nnex
es
No
Y
es
No
No
E
ngli
sh
19
Rai
lway
s D
ivis
ion
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
Yes
B
rief
His
tory
, Mis
sion
S
tate
men
t, O
rgan
izat
ion,
2
Par
ts, 8
Sub
-par
ts, I
ndex
N
o
Yes
N
o
N
o
Eng
lish
20
Rel
igio
us A
ffai
rs a
nd
Inte
r F
aith
Har
mon
y D
ivis
ion
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
N
o
Yes
(M
essa
ge f
rom
Min
iste
r,
Pre
face
by
Sec
reta
ry),
11
Par
ts,
An
nexe
s N
o
Yes
N
o
N
o
Eng
lish
21
Rev
enue
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
No
Y
es
For
war
d, 2
Cha
pte
rs,
Sta
tist
ical
Ap
pend
ix
Yes
Y
es
No
No
E
ngli
sh
22
Sta
te B
ank
of
Pak
ista
n
Yes
N
o
Yes
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
Go
vern
or'
s M
essa
ge,
Go
vern
ance
Str
uctu
re, 6
Mai
n
Par
ts
Yes
Y
es
Yes
R
egul
ar
No
E
ngli
sh
and
Urd
u
23
Sta
tist
ics
Div
isio
n
Yes
Y
es
No
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
For
war
d, 3
Cha
pter
s,
An
nex
ures
Y
es
Yes
N
o
Reg
ular
Y
es
Eng
lish
24
Sup
rem
e C
ourt
of
Pak
ista
n
Yes
Y
es
No
N
o
Yes
Y
es
For
war
d b
y C
hief
Jus
tice
, R
egis
trar
Rep
ort
, (15
Mai
n P
arts
) N
o
Yes
N
o
Reg
ular
N
o
Eng
lish
25
Tex
tile
Ind
ustr
y D
ivis
ion
Y
es
Yes
Y
es
Yes
N
o
Yes
M
essa
ge f
rom
Sec
reta
ry,
Intr
oduc
tio
n,
3 C
hapt
ers,
P
rofi
les
of O
rgan
izat
ions
N
o
Yes
N
o
Reg
ular
N
o
Eng
lish
26
Waf
aqi
Moh
tasi
b (O
mbu
dsm
an)
Sec
reta
riat
Y
es
Yes
N
o
No
Y
es
Yes
F
orew
ord
s b
y F
eder
al
Om
bud
sman
, 7 M
ain
Par
ts,
2 A
ppen
dix,
Co
ntac
t de
tail
s N
o
Yes
N
o
Reg
ular
Y
es
Eng
lish
27
Cap
ital
Ad
min
istr
atio
n an
d D
evel
op
men
t (C
A
& D
) D
ivis
ion
N
o
28
Cap
ital
Dev
elo
pm
ent
Aut
hori
ty (
CD
A)
No
29
Cli
mat
e C
hang
e D
ivis
ion
N
o
30
Co
mm
erce
Div
isio
n
No
7 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
31
Co
mp
etit
ion
Co
mm
issi
on
of
Pak
ista
n (C
CP
) N
o
32
Cou
ncil
of
Isla
mic
Id
eolo
gy
No
33
Dru
g R
egul
ato
ry
Aut
hori
ty (
DR
A)
of
Pak
ista
n
No
34
Eco
nom
ic A
ffai
rs
Div
isio
n
No
35
Ed
ucat
ion
Div
isio
n
No
36
Ele
ctio
n C
om
mis
sion
o
f P
akis
tan
(EC
P)
Sec
reta
riat
N
o
37
Est
abli
shm
ent
Div
isio
n
No
38
For
eign
Aff
airs
D
ivis
ion
N
o
39
Ho
usin
g &
Wor
ks
Div
isio
n
No
40
Indus
trie
s an
d
Pro
duct
ion
Div
isio
n
No
41
Info
rmat
ion
Tec
hnol
ogy
(IT
) &
T
elec
om
Div
isio
n N
o
42
Inte
llec
tual
Pro
per
ty
Org
aniz
atio
n (I
PO
) P
akis
tan
N
o
43
Inte
rio
r D
ivis
ion
N
o
44
Kas
hm
ir A
ffai
rs a
nd
No
rthe
rn A
reas
D
ivis
ion
N
o
45
Min
istr
y o
f L
aw,
Just
ice
and H
uman
R
ight
s N
o
46
Nat
iona
l A
rch
ives
of
Pak
ista
n
No
8 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
47
Nat
iona
l D
atab
ase
&
Reg
istr
atio
n A
utho
rity
(N
AD
RA
) N
o
48
Nat
iona
l H
ealt
h S
ervic
es,
Reg
ulat
ion
and C
oord
inat
ion
Div
isio
n
No
49
Nat
iona
l P
oli
ce
Bur
eau
(NP
B)
No
50
Pak
ista
n E
lect
roni
c M
edia
Reg
ulat
ory
Aut
hori
ty (
PE
MR
A)
No
51
Pet
role
um &
Nat
ura
l R
esou
rces
Div
isio
n
No
52
Por
ts &
Shi
ppi
ng
Div
isio
n
No
53
Pri
vat
izat
ion
Div
isio
n
No
54
Pub
lic
Pro
cure
men
t R
egul
ator
y A
uthor
ity
(PP
RA
) N
o
55
Sta
tes
and
Fro
nti
er
Reg
ions
Div
isio
n
No
56
Wat
er &
Pow
er
Div
isio
n
No
9 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
Sr. No. Name of Government Ministries/Divisions/Departments
1 Cabinet Division
2 Establishment Division
3 Capital Administration and Development (CA & D) Division
4 Commerce Division
5 Textile Industry Division
6 Communications Division
7 Finance Division
8 Revenue Division
9 Economic Affairs Division
10 Statistics Division
11 Privatization Division
12 Education Division.
13 Climate Change Division
14 National Food, Security and Research Division
15 National Health Services
16 Housing & Works Division
17 Industries and Production Division
18 Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage Division
19 Information Technology (IT) & Telecom Division
20 Interior Division
21 Narcotics Control Division
22 Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan Division
23 Oversees Pakistanis and HRD Division
24 Law, Justice and Human Rights Division
25 Religious Affairs and Inter Faith Harmony Division
26 Parliamentary Affairs Division
27 Railways Division
28 Ministry of Science & Technology
29 Water & Power Division
30 Planning Development and Reform Division
31 Inter Provincial Coordination Division
32 Petroleum & Natural Resources Division
33 Ports & Shipping Division
34 States and Frontier Regions Division
35 Defense Division
Annexure-A
List of Government Ministries/Divisions/Departments
10
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
CRCP Publication
36 Defense Production Division
37 Foreign Affairs Division
38 Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA)
39 Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA
40 National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA
41 Intellectual Property Organization (IPO) Pakistan
42 Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA
43 Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP)
44 Pakistan Telecommunication Authorities (PTA)
45 Drug Regulatory Authority (DRA) of Pakistan
46 National Database & Registration Authority (NADRA
47 Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)
48 Capital Development Authority (CDA
49 State Bank of Pakistan
50 Supreme Court of Pakistan
51 Council of Islamic Ideology
52 National Archives of Pakistan
53 National Institute of Historical & Cultural Research
54 National Police Bureau (NPB
55 Wafaqi Mohtasib (Ombudsman)
56 National Accountability Bureau (NAB)
11 CRCP Publication
Exploring Transparency in Pakistan
House No. 12, Street No. 1, G-6/3, P.O. 1379, IslamabadPhone: +92 51 111 739 739, Fax: +92 51 2825336
E-mail: Web: www.crcp.org.pk
