December 12, 2006	Tuesday	Ziqa'ad 20, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: Parliamentarians and academics here on Monday emphasised the need for effective research services to ensure better legislative work. They were speaking at a roundtable on “Research support for parliamentarians: role of Parliamentary Institute of Legislative Services (PILS)” at the interim PILS facility in Parliament Lodges.

Representatives of both treasury and opposition benches agreed that the existing mechanisms of information and research could not meet the demands of a house that had debated a myriad of national and international issues since 2002.

Organised by the Pakistan Legislative Strengthening Project (PLSP) — a two-year initiative funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) — the roundtable was attended by seven members of National Assembly and the Senate as well as eighteen researchers from a number of national universities, think-tanks and civil society organisations across Pakistan. The session was part of a three-day specialised workshop on meeting the research needs of parliamentarians.

William H. Robinson, former senior specialist in public policy at Congressional Research Services moderated the roundtable through a series of questions aimed at helping parliamentarians in assessing their need for objective and balanced research.

Donia Aziz, parliamentary secretary for population welfare said there was a dire need to educate parliamentarians about the rules of business since most of them had little training for that. She argued that often skilled parliamentarians were restricted by certain rules from playing a proactive role in parliamentary discussion and dissemination of information which undermined their effectiveness.

“We need clear, crisp and correct information at a short notice; we simply don’t have the time to wait for long academic writings,” she said while calling for an Internet-based network of researchers and parliamentarians which could help parliamentarians receive immediate research input from experts all over the country.

Independent research could be of great help to the working of parliamentary committees and the two houses of parliament, said Farzeen Ahmad Sarfaraz, chairperson of the National Assembly standing committee on environment.

Researchers expressed their resolve to extend support to the parliament for the cause of democratic development, but argued that the onus lay on parliamentarians to identify issues that needed research input.

“It is not availability of research or information; it is the lack of skill and intention to use as there are shelves after shelves full of research in the country,” said Dr Kaiser Bengali, senior economist at SZABIST, adding that the quantity and quality of parliamentary research depended both on supply and demand. “Researchers can be mobilised only if there is a strong demand from the parliament for quality research,” he said.

Prof Dr Aliya H. Khan of the Quaid-i-Azam University said a lot of research coming out of universities and civil society organisations did not answer parliamentarians’ needs.

Researchers’ findings could help parliamentarians understand issues in depth for better policy drafting and implementation. However, she said, academicians must disseminate their findings in a manner to which MNAs can connect. It’s a two-way relationship and this forum must become a regular one for it to be effective for both sides.

Deputy director SZABIST Syed Asad Hussain identified the need to conduct research in Urdu since it was the first and only language of communication for a majority of parliamentarians. Mostly, the treasury requires research which is in line with a decision already taken and often they need academics and researchers’ input to support their position and not to arrive at an appropriate decision, he argued.

Douglas McArthur, former provincial legislator and professor of public policy at Simon Fraser University in Canada, spoke on the importance of capacity for parliamentarians to be able to fully assess government policies presented to them.

Julie Koenen-Grant, acting mission director of USAID in Pakistan, stressed that linking civil society resources with parliament could be an important contribution of PILS.

Support for PLSP is part of the $1.5 billion in aid that the US government is providing to Pakistan over five years to improve education, health, governance and economic growth.