Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Budget 2010-11: minister for enhancing transparency, participation

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Finance, Engineer Mohammad Hamayun Khan has stressed the need for devising a broad-based strategy to make the provincial budget 2010-11 more transparent and participatory. Speaking at a meeting held at the department of finance to present the budget, he directed the authorities concerned to make the budget beneficial for the people.
He said that efforts should be made to give proper attention to the health, education and social sectors. Earlier, the minister was briefed on the financial position of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Budget 2011-12 and the necessary impact it has due to the 18th constitutional amendment. He was also told about the fiscal challenges being faced by KP due to the floods last year and estimated increase in the budgetary allocations due to the implementation of different measures for welfare of general masses.
Increase in the expenditures due to the induction of teachers, implementation of four-tier formula in the education department, rehabilitation of flood victims etc was also debated and a strategy was adopted to overcome shortfalls in the budget. The minister was also shown total break up of the federal fund and manpower transfer. He was told that a proper support to raising literacy ratio in the province has also been proposed in the budget. Moreover, various new programmes have been proposed in the budget for the wellbeing of talented students and youth.
The minister was also briefed about different priorities of KP government in various social sectors and it was identified that efforts would be made to avoid putting extra load on the people. Commenting on the briefing, Engineer Hamayun Khan directed the finance department officers to work out budget after setting all priorities of the government to fulfil expectations of general masses. He expressed hope that the crises and challenges faced by the province last year would not affect the budget adversely. Those who attended the presentation included Secretary Finance, Sahibzada Saeed Ahmad, Special Secretary Finance, Masood Khan, Additional Secretaries Nadeem Bashir and Bashir Khan and other officers of the finance department.