Lahore: The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) Pakistan organized a half-day-long policy dialogue around “opportunities and challenges for digital participation of citizens in local government affairs in Punjab” at Four Points Sheraton Hotel, Lahore.
Officers from the Punjab Local Government and Community Development Department led the event and provided their inputs to ensure valuable and meaningful digital participation of citizens in local government affairs and how it could be further improved? Academia and media representatives also joined in the dialogue and recorded their inputs. The officers raise a collective agreement to improve the digital participation of citizens in local government affairs.
Ms. Maria Tariq, Additional Secretary Development, Local Government and Community Development Department, Punjab appreciated GIZ and CPDI for holding a session to record the inputs of relevant officers and generating a useful discussion around the topic. She remarked that the department is also interested and wants to take concrete steps to improve citizen’s digital participation to acquire local government services at the grassroots level.
Mr. Masood Mehmood Tamanna, a senior officer from Local Government Service, shed light on the need for appreciation of good work done by the local government officers by appreciation and giving them learning and exposure opportunities to grow further. Mr. Masood presented a detailed analysis of the current situation regarding citizen digital participation in Local government affairs.
Ms. Sanam Irshad, Technical advisor GIZ Punjab remarked that Local Government Department is willing to change and adapt IT-based innovative creativities and has already taken good initiatives like ‘Khidmat Apki Dehleez Per’, ‘Baldia-online’, ‘the Citizen Feedback Monitoring Program (CFMP)’ and ‘IT Based Monitoring System’. The Punjab LG&CD Department also designed an IT-based project with the objective of transformation from manual to e-governance mode for better management, future planning, decision-making, transparency, good governance and effective performance of municipal service delivery.
The participants appreciated the study’s results and gave inputs to improve it further.
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