Islamabad, October 18; To facilitate and strengthen role of Parliament, Political Parties, Citizens Groups and Media in the Federal Budget Process in Pakistan, PILDAT has launched a Budget Process Guide in Pakistan today.

The Guide is being launched as a part of a Workshop today in Islamabad.

PILDAT has been working to make the Federal Budget Process more inclusive and to strengthen the channels and practices of Parliamentary input, scrutiny and oversight of the national budget.

The PILDAT Budget Process Guide contains a variety of papers, case studies and reports on how to make the federal and Parliamentary budget process more effective in Pakistan. The various case studies, especially from countries such as Canada and India, highlight how various segments of the democratic polity in the two countries affect the budget formulation, its scrutiny and oversight.

Federal Budget is one of the most important policy documents in a year that reflects the country�s economic outlook with regards to fiscal, financial and economic objectives. Federal Budget is one such document that impacts all segments of the society and therefore the single most important entry point for influencing governmental priorities not just for the traditional stakeholders such as businesses and financial institutions but also general public, civil society groups as well as the media.

Parliamentary Control of the purse strings or the national budget is one of the most crucial powers of any Parliament. As the representative of the people, Parliament is the appropriate place to ensure that the Budget best matches the nation's needs with available resources. Such an exercise demands detailed engagement of the Parliament with the Budget Process.

Pakistan�s current budgetary process has, for various historical reasons, attracted little input from Parliamentarians, Political Parties and Citizens Groups. The budget process has, in consequence, become solely the domain of the Executive, leaving little scope for input in formulation, analysis or accountability.

For an effective budget process in Pakistan, it is crucial that various stakeholders in Pakistan - Parliamentarians, Political Parties, Citizens Groups and Organisations and the Media - come together to shape what can be an effective budget process in Pakistan.

The Budget Process Guide in Pakistan and its various segments can be downloaded here:

1. Foreward
2. Effective Budget Process in Pakistan
3. Case Studies from Canada
1. Parliamentary Pre-Budget Consultation in Canada
2. Canadian Process of Parliamentary Consideration and Approval of the Budget
3. Role of Canadian Political Parties in the Budget Process
4. Involvement of Civil Society & Media in Budget Process in Canada
5. International Models for Parliamentary Budget Office
6. Parliamentary Oversight: The Role of the Auditor General and the Public Accounts Committee of the Parliament
7. Holding the Government to Account: Experience in Canada

4. Baseline Report: Parliamentary Budget Process in Pakistan and Canada
5. Background Paper: Budget and Budgetary Process in the Parliament of India
6. Background Paper: Medium-Term Budgetary Framework in Pakistan
Reports
7. Parliamentary Committees and the Budget Process
8. Exclusive Briefings on the Federal Budget 2009-2010:
• Pakistan Peoples Party - PPPP
• Pakistan Muslim League - PML
• Muttahida Quami Movement - MQM

9. Parliamentary Committees and the Budget Process
10. Pre-Budget Consultation by the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue
11. How to Influence the Budget
12. The New Budget Process: What Should Parliamentarians Know?