ISLAMABAD, Nov 2: The Planning Commission has constituted a 21-member task force to review the social sector programmes and pinpoint the loopholes in them.

Consisting of leading social workers, human rights and development activists, educationists and planners, the task force would review the projects in health, education, rural development and other areas and come up with plans to implement them.

According to an official announcement, the task force will review current programmes for delivery of services related to quality of life of ordinary citizens. It will suggest ways for improving social capital and trust in order to empower the masses. It will also focus on areas like improving preventive health, education, access to justice and gender balance in development.

It would also help the government in implementation of different social sector programmes by involving the target population.

Former federal minister Javed Jabbar and Shoaib Sultan Khan, chairman of the National Rural Support Programme, are co-chairpersons of the task force, while A. M. Mohsin, chairman of Rotary International’s Earthquake Disaster Relief Committee, is its secretary.

Secretaries of the ministries of social welfare, health, education, women development, population welfare, local government and executive directors of the Higher Education Commission and National Education Foundation are ex-officio members.

Other members are Sono Khangharani, CEO Thardeep Rural Development Programme, Karachi; Dr Sania Nishtar, president, Heartfile, Islamabad; Dr Abdul Hamid, former chairman, Department of Special Education, University of Punjab; Mehtab Akbar Rashdi, former secretary education and culture; Tahira Abdullah, development worker and rights activist; Dr Shaukat Hameed Khan, rector, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute; Dr Quratul Ain Bakhtiari, director, Institute for Development Studies and Practice; Rakhshanda Naz, CEO, Aurat Foundation; Faisal Edhi of the Edhi Foundation; Dr Zeba Sattar, chairperson, Population Council; Haris Gazdar, social activist; Farah Pervez Saleh, executive director, Citizen Commission for Human Development; Ismail Patel, former federal secretary; Dr Azhar Farooqi, former executive director, National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases; Tasneem Siddiqui, CEO Saiban, Ahmed Rafay Alam of LUMS and M.S. Fareeha Zafar, executive director of SAHE.