Performance contracts with ministries: government takes novel steps to improve governance

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has decided to give targets to every ministry and for this purpose he will sign performance contracts with each and every Minister by the first week of July, 2015. Sources privy to the development said that Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal has been tasked to get the targets for the next year from ten important ministries, draw up the format of performance contracts to be signed and as an incentive the Ministry that would achieve all its targets during the year would be rewarded with Rs one billion as prize money.
The sources said the objective of introducing performance contract is to improve and increase efficiency, productivity for quicker decision making in measurable and quantifiable terms aiming to strengthen the strategic thinking in central government agencies and making them more cost conscious and results oriented. The ministries will set their goals and targets as per their functions and as a starting point, medium-term goals, set in the Green Book/Medium Term Budget framework of every Ministry will serve the benchmark which can be improved further. In this connection, the Minister for Planning and Development held a meeting with the Secretaries of Ministries of Commerce, Communication, Federal Education and Professional Training, National health Services, Information Technology, Petroleum and Natural Resources, Railways, Textile Industries, Aviation Division and PD&R to impress upon them the objective of the performance contracts and the targets for the year.
The ministries have been directed to send the draft of performance contracts and targets to the Ministry of Planning and Development by the 2nd of July. It was decided at the meeting that each Ministry will prepare its draft agreement and the performance contract which will be finalised in a meeting to be held on 3rd July.