ISLAMABAD, Aug 19: The government has decided to extensively undertake capacity building of civil servants, including those of provincial services, at a cost of Rs3.5 billion.

Sources told Dawn on Friday that the World Bank had promised $55 million of the $61 million initiative which also aimed at aggressively checking corrupt practices in the federal and provincial governments’ agencies.

The government has assured the World Bank that Pakistan has a strong commitment for capacity building of civil servants under the Public Sector Capacity Building Project, for which Islamabad would spend $6 million. For additional expenditure, the World Bank was told, the federal government would make available the required resources.

The finance division is the sponsoring agency of the project and the component implementing agencies include the establishment, finance and planning and development divisions, the Central Board of Revenue, the water and power ministry, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority.

Inclusion in the project the commerce ministry, the economic affairs division and the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority has also been approved.

The Planning Commission had approved start-up activities for the project with a revolving fund of Rs30 million.

Under the programme, professional training has so far been provided to at least 500 civil service officers occupying key mid-level positions.

The plan was aimed at upgrading pre-service and in-service domestic public sector training and improving0 functional capacity of key economic ministries and regulatory agencies.

At the same time, implementation of policies will be refined by having improved quality and effective and enhanced capacity of regulatory authorities. The government will ensure improvements in public expenditure management practices, timely and effective monitoring and evaluation of public expenditure and reform programmes as well as having improved coordination among the economic ministries.