PICIIP Consultants arrange stakeholder engagement workshop

The stakeholder engagement workshop saw the active participation of senior local government officials and other stakeholders. The delegates emphasized the pivotal role that the reformed PLGA will play in filling critical capacity gaps among local government officials and elected representatives. The strengthened institutional setup and enhanced training provisions are expected to contribute significantly to improved service delivery in alignment with the objectives outlined in relevant local government legislation.

In his opening remarks, Umer Tayyab, Deputy Project Director-PMU PICIIP, said, “Under PICIIP, both the infrastructure and institutional capacity development of PLGA is being done. New blocks have been constructed in Lalamusa Campus and a new state-of-the-art campus is being constructed in Lahore.”

The workshop is a significant milestone in the ongoing efforts of the Government of Punjab to empower local government institutions and enhance the capabilities of their officials. It is anticipated that these capacity building initiatives will have a lasting impact on the efficiency and sustainability of Punjab’s intermediate cities.

“Hearing and listening from speakers has been a great mutual learning. We have many takeaways on how local governments can be put on the steering wheel of development process. With renewed focus on capacity development of individuals and institutions, we can improve the service delivery in large and intermediate cities of the province,” said PICIIP Project Director Hamza Salik. PICIIP is a flagship local government initiative co-financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Punjab.

PICIIP is a flagship local government initiative co-financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Punjab. At the heart of PICIIP’s agenda is the Institutional Support and Capacity Development component, which recently concluded its design phase. The overarching goal of this component is to conduct a comprehensive provincial-level exercise to fortify the institutional and organizational setup, training methodologies, and capacity-building provisions of the PLGA.