Abstract
The current chapter focuses on administrative reforms, notably LG reforms (1947–2019) in Pakistan and devolution of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 2000 to 2019 in the four provinces of Pakistan. It highlights the implementation of administrative and financial powers devolved at the local level to bring democracy at the grassroots level. A mixed-method approach has been used. The devolution 2001 gave autonomy to the local level and a locally elected representative was made the head of district administration, management and development. Devolution is a process to facilitate the people and perk up the service delivery by supplying the service resources at the local level. But the formation of local governments in 2001 and their subsequent dissolution in 2010 had disturbed the real essence of devolution in Pakistan. In Pakistan’s scenario, decentralization is mostly internally driven and the military’s need to legitimize its control appears to be a prime reason behind the recurring attempts at LG reforms. The overall devolution program in Pakistan failed to deliver mainly because of LGs having no authority and funds at their disposal. In a nutshell, the functions of federal governments and finance were only deconcentrated with a shift to local governments.
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Paul, Z.I., Sial, M.A. (2022). Trends in Local Government Reforms: Case of Environmental Protection Authority. In: Zahra, A., Bouckaert, G., Zafar Iqbal Jadoon, M., Jabeen, N. (eds) Public Sector Reforms in Pakistan. Public Sector Organizations. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-96825-0_8
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