The Pakistan Development Review

38 : 4 Part II (Winter 1999) pp. 913934

Capacity Building in Public Sector Organisations

SEEMI WAHEED
1. INTRODUCTION
During the last two decades the world has experienced a major transformation
in thinking on the role of government in provision of services and socio-economic
development. This change in thinking has come about as a result of the inability of
two major philosophies of productioncapitalism and socialismto redistribute
resources for the improvement in the living condition of the masses. Both the
philosophies have shortcomings. Capitalism encourages entrepreneurship and
growth, but it also creates extreme economic disparities leading to poverty.
Socialism in its attempt to create an egalitarian society curbs and stifles
entrepreneurship, leading to discontentment and economic inefficiencies.
Developing countries have followed, by and large, a mix of these philosophies
but the result has not been encouraging in most of the cases. Economic distortions
and inefficiencies have been the common outcome. In addition, human development
indicators and the quality of life in these countries has fallen far below the minimum
acceptable standard. Inequitable distribution of resources is attributed to the absence
of a participative and democratic political structure on the one hand, and
mismanagement of resources and the absence of a facilitative administrative
structure on the other. The latter attribute is now commonly termed as poor
governance of resources.
The success, in terms of growth and development, of the Newly Industrialised
Countries (Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong) was attributed to the
reforms in civil service [World Bank (1993)] irrespective of whether these were
authoritative or democratic regimes [Boeninger (1992)]. It was, thus, demonstrated
that the essential element in the economic growth in these countries was the
application of rule of law, transparency, accountability and strengthening of
institutions rather than any particular form of government.
Governance, as understood in common parlance means enabling or facilitating
an environment that promotes public-private partnership for equitable economic
Seemi Waheed is Deputy Director (Academics), Pakistan Administrative Staff College,
Government of Pakistan, Lahore.

Seemi Waheed

914

growth [Edralin (1996-97)]. If that be the goal of governance, the effectiveness of

government will be measured in terms of the achievement of the goal.
The effectiveness of any organisation is established when the right goals are
selected and achieved. For achieving defined goals, it is essential that organisations
design an organisational structure that is facilitative in the achievement of goals. The
focus is on developing enabling environments for employees which, in turn, means
developing a human resource management system that is oriented to achieving goals.
The Human Resource Management System (HRMS) comprises human resource
planning, recruitment/selection, training and development and performance
appraisal. Each of the aspects has a backward and forward linkage which is based on
the assessment of an organisations present and future needs.
It is a fact that public organisations, whether departments, semi-autonomous
or autonomous bodies, and authorities, have archaic organisation structures,
procedures, rules and regulations and above all non-enabling attitudes. All these do
not promote development nor encourage public-private partnership. The inertia of
the public bureaucracy is so obvious that these respond slowly to the changes in the
external environment.
As a result, the human resource management system which includes federal
and provincial Public Service Commission (FPSC) (recruiting organisation) and the
Establishment Division1 (responsible for the placement, training, promotion, transfer
etc.) in public sector, has responded slowly to the changes in the socio-economic and
technological environment. Consequently, these organisations have neither
introduced new subjects nor revamped the syllabus of competitive examinations. The
pre-entry and in-service training systems also remain less changed. In fact, there is
little effort to provide new skills (computer, interpersonal, negotiation etc.) and
attitudes (optimistic, non-complaining, helpful, cooperative etc.) to employees at
middle and operating level. Keeping in view the required restructuring of public
organisation for capacity building the paper will focus on (a) establishing goals in
public sector organisation (b) organisational structure (c) human resource
management system.
2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ON CAPACITY BUILDING
Literature on governance invariably discusses capacity building. Capacity
building has a broader scope than institution building, because in addition to concern
for human resources and organisation, it covers the overall environment within which
organisations operate and interact. In includes, for example, working of the labour
market, which determines how efficiently the human resources are allocated among
alternative uses; concern for the ability of public sector institutions to finance recurrent
budgets and to provide adequate levels of salary to hire and retain qualified and trained
1

FPSC is the main recruiting organisation for civil jobs. Establishment Division, another HRM
organisation, deals with the placement, training, transfer, promotion etc. of all the civil service employees.

Capacity Building in Public Sector

915

staff (World Conference on Governance, held in Manila from 31 May 4 June 1999).
Apparently, the capacity building approach is specific, however it needs to consider the
overall environment in which the organisation is operating and the need to make rules,
regulation and procedures coherent with the achievement of goals.
Capacity can be defined as capability to perform the specific assigned task
effectively and efficiently on a continuous basis. Capacity is like a container having
some volume. The container can be filled to the extent of its volume. However,
human capacity to perform assigned specific tasks efficiently and effectively is not
fixed. It can be enhanced and improved through training, interaction and exposure to
new methods, skills and opportunity to use acquired skills.
According to Management Development and Governance Division/United
Nations Development Programme (MDGD/UNDP), capacity building for public
service requires improvement in the ability to identify problems for public action,
assess options for responding to these problems, formulate policies that
constructively address these problems, implement activities required by the policies
and sustain such activities over sufficient time to have an impact on conditions for
economic and social development.
Increasing efficiency and effectiveness has been the goal of Taylorism
(classical school of management) and the Weberian School (structuralist). The
ultimate goals of increasing efficiency, for classical and structuralist schools have
been maximisation of profits, in case of private firms, and maximisation of service in
case of a public organisation. [Sharitz and Ott (1987)].
The inability of State apparatus to maximise its goals is influenced by the
following facts: [Boeninger (1992)].
Authority: The political and institutional requirement for establishing
authority should not be taken for granted. Political conflicts often result in
strategies explicitly designed to hinder the exercise of authority. Society
cannot function without impartial rules for all citizens. In order to avoid
arbitrary actions legal limits to authority need to be established.
Problem-solving: Identifying problems and issues, formulating options to
solve these and mobilising resources through the tax system required
suitable institutional channels that respond to conflicting demands.
Conflict Resolution: Political and social conflicts can adversely affect
development. What is needed at the level of strategic planning and political
action is the ability to channel and resolve such conflicts. This requires
sustainable institutional channels and a framework of viable options.
Implementation: Economists and politicians tend to take it for granted that
once decisions are made they will be effectively translated into operational
realities. In fact, administrative bottlenecks in the government and the
private sector may jeopardise government programmes. These constraints

916

Seemi Waheed

may involve lack of managerial know-how or deliberate political

obstruction. This phase of policy-making process provides ample
opportunities for impending and delaying public polices. Private sector
initiatives, too, may be blocked for ideological reason. Without effective
implementation capability, a stalemate ensues, or unintended effects
frustrate the governments development goals.
Cohen also developed a framework for analysing capacity building issues.
His framework consists of five dimensions: (a) targeted personnel capacity (i.e.,
personnel who carry out critical or high priority government functions such as public
sector managers, professionals and technicians) (b) capacity building stages
(beginning with anticipating, planning and advocating manpower needs; and utilising
effectively the institutions emerging cadre of skilled personnel; training and
upgrading skills through in-service programmes, and ending with promoting an
attractive public service through leadership, strategies and rules); (c) training
capacity; (d) external institutional, manpower, and support system (e.g. obtaining
support from institutions, in charge of training, managing, and retention of
manpower, institutions that play a role in supporting capacity building efforts;
information, communications and institutional coordination systems, support by
political leaders, decision-makers and stakeholders and budgetary and financial
resources); and (e) public sector task environment factors that affect institutional
efforts to recruit, effectively use, and retain skilled personnel.
Focussing on capacity building, Cohen, Boeninger and others have not
mentioned goal setting or developing mission statement in public sector organisation,
which is the starting point for building capacity. It is generally observed that public
sector organisations do not generally have a written mission statement from which
goals and objectives can be derived. For example, public sector training institutions
do not have an organisational mission statement, however, they have goals, which
are stated as objectives.2 Similarly, ministries and divisions lack mission statements.
Majority of the activities carried out, are run on the treadmill without due
cognizance to identification of problems and its resolution as stated by Boeninger.
Partly, this is owing to lack of political commitment to identify problems and resolve
them by building capacity. The paper will, therefore, focus on this aspect.
3. METHODOLOGY
The paper will be largely conceptual and theoretical. It would draw upon the
literature on capacity building in public sector organisation. The approach used will be
based on a priori reasoning. The sources of information would be mainly secondary.
2
There is hierarchy of mission, goals and objectives. Mission statement gives the statement of
existence of organisation in a particular business. Goals are desired ends and objectives are specific short
term, verifiable measurable ends to be achieved in a given time frame.

Capacity Building in Public Sector

917

The model of capacity building will be developed for public sector

organisation. The variables of the model are: (1) mission statement, (2) goals and
objectives, (3) organisational structure, (4) HRMS comprises (i) recruitment, (ii)
training, (iii) performance evaluation, (iv) incentives.
The mission statement is the independent variable on which all the other
variables and sub-variables are dependent. It is assumed that once the organisations
formulate a clear mission statement, goals and objectives it would be relatively easier
to develop appropriate structures and HRMS to achieve goals.
4. A STRATEGIC MODEL FOR CAPACITY BUILDING
IN PUBLIC SECTOR
Why do we need a model for capacity building in public sector organisation?
On the one hand the model will facilitate the identification of the missing links or
gaps in capacity building in public service; on the other, it will also help in
identification of the variables of capacity building that lead to effective and efficient
performance. The variables of the model are mission statement, goals, organisation
structure, human resource management system, output and service. All these operate
in a macro environment which comprises the political, economic, social and
technological environment.
Following is the generic model for capacity building for public sector
organisation:
Pol.

Eco.
MISSION STATEMENT

ORGANISATION
GOALS

ORGANISATION
STRUCTURE

HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
Recruitment

Skills
(Training)
Performance Evaluation
(efficiency, effectiveness)

Remuneration and
Incentive

Output/Service

Social

Tech.

Fig. 1.

Seemi Waheed

918

The above model can be applied to specific public sector organisation (ministry,
division, department, semi-autonomous body etc.) with related modifications, if any,
required.
Mission Statement
The first element of the model is developing a mission statement for public
sector organisation. The mission statement explains what the organisation is and
what it seeks to achieve. The mission exists not as a concept but as a statement. It
gives identity and direction to the organisation. The development of the mission
statement has three dimensions, (1) shared values, beliefs and vision (2) formulation
of goals, objectives and methods of achieving and (3) performance measurement,
communication and feedback, incentives [Kiggundu (1989)].
Often, in the literature of organisation management, the mission and the goals
are used interchangably. However, these have conceptual differences. A mission
statement, as mentioned, gives the broadest statement of an organisations strategy.
This is more stable and does not change so rapidly. From the mission statement a set
of goals (one, two or more) are derived, and from these the objectives (specific,
measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound) are spelled out.
In the absence of a mission statement, neither goals and objectives can be
formulated nor can capacity be enhanced. Without it, the performance evaluation of
an organisation and its employees would be like taking a shot in the dark. It is,
therefore, essential that public sector organisations state their missions and fix their
goals. As an example the mission for an apex training organisation in the public
sector could be:
(a) To enhance the requisite management competencies of senior managers
from public/private sector to deal with future challenges.
(b) To remain governments preferred supplier of policy advice.
(c) To provide enriching and satisfying place to trainees and its employees.
(d) To inculcate work ethics for promotion of good governance.
From this mission statement the following goals can be derived:
1. To carry out training need assessment (TNA) for public service for middle
and top level management with the support of Establishment Division.
2. To continuously improve quality of courses, facilities and human resource.
3. To conduct short specialised courses (in addition to long course) for
middle and top management level in public and private sector.
4. To train staff at all levels in the organisation to handle their given
jobs/assignments and provide appropriate incentives to motivate people to
undertake additional assignment.
The above mentioned goals will provide guidelines for developing objectives
for a given time period:

Capacity Building in Public Sector

919

1. To undertake TNA for the middle and top management of the training
organisation.
2. To update/develop job descriptions/specification of the employees of
Pakistan Administrative Staff College (PASC) at operational, middle and
top level, and identify the deficient areas requiring improvement.
3. To provide both on-the-job and of-the-job skill oriented training to those
who are deficient in given skills.
4. To conduct X number of courses in, say, quality improvement, or
computer skills. IT management, leadership, negotiation skills.
5. To organise two seminars of national/international level on current
topics.
6. To purchase equipment for the classroom in 1999-2000.
7. To purchase X number of books, journals, magazines for the library in
specialised areas.
8. To equip the library with on-line information system through Internet
facility in 1999-2000.
The formulation of the mission statement, goals and objectives is summarised
in Fig.2.
Mission
Goals
Objectives

Resource
Allocation

Operational Action Plan

Fig. 2.
Structure
The structure of an organisation is designed in a way to facilitate the
achievement of its goals and objectives. Organisational structure refers to the ways

920

Seemi Waheed

that tasks and responsibility are allocated to individuals and the way individuals are
grouped in offices, departments and divisions. An organisational structure could be
flat or tall, centralised or decentralised, participative or authoritative, which depends
on what goals the organisation is pursuing [Wright et al. (1996)].
Government structure appears as one monolithic structure in which all
departments, semi-autonomous and autonomous bodies have more or less a similar
structure, irrespective of what particular business the organisation is pursuing.
Hierarchy, the chain of command and centralisation, are generally the elements that
are emphasised in a public sector organisation. This is so because operational skills
(information, transmission, interpersonal abilities, computer facility etc., to name a
few) are weak. Therefore decisions have to be made even for operating tasks, at the
higher level.
Decentralisation is often prescribed for public sector organisations, especially
in the execution of development projects like health, education, agriculture, irrigation
etc. through local government initiative which has met with reported success in the
execution of such projects. [Bhatt et al. (1987).]
However, effective decentralised organisational structure requires appropriate
skills of subordinates3, clarity of delegation of authority, clarity of plans/objectives,
communication technique, amount of personal contact required and feedback/
control. It also requires positive behaviour (cooperation, willingness, noncomplaining, sharing work information etc.) of subordinates to accept responsibility
and willingness to take risks within certain limits.
Human Resource Management System (HRMS)
It goes without saying that the main competitive advantage of any
organisation is its human resource. Therefore, special focus has to be given to all its
sub-systems comprising, recruitment, training (skills), performance evaluation,
remuneration and incentives (Fig.1 gives the interrelationship of HRMS with output
and mission statement).
The need for human resource planning may not be readily apparent.
However, an organisation that does not do human resource planning may find that it
is not meeting its personnel requirement or its overall goals effectively. Human
resource planning has four aspects:
(a) Planning for future needs by deciding how many people with what skills the
organisation will need.
(b) Planning for future balance by comparing the number of needed employees
to the number of present employees who can be expected to stay with the
organisation.
3
These skills have to be identified for the jobs of employees of respective organisations.
However, general skills could be divided into technical skills and interpersonal skills. The technical skills
would be: IT skills, information processing, problems identification, problem resolution, analysis etc.
Interpersonal skills would be: ability to communicate with empathy, courtesy.

Capacity Building in Public Sector

921

(c) Planning for recruiting and laying off employees, and;

(d) Planning for development of employees to make sure the organisation has a
steady supply of experience and capable personnel.
The number of employees to be hired and trained would be determined by
these aspects of planning but such an organised and careful human resource planning
is absent in public sector organisation. Much of human resource planning is based on
rule of thumb.
Recruitment and Training
Each year the civil service recruitment system attracts qualified people from
all over the country who are screened through a competitive examination, interview
and psychological testing. There is a general for these tests. It includes almost all the
social sciences and selected science subject. This syllabus needs to be updated and
revised for holding the competitive examination.
Successful candidates are assigned Occupational Groups4 on the basis of
marks obtained. Approximately, 100 selectees undergo a Common Training
Programme (CTP) at the Civil Service Academy for eight months each year. After
which they join specialised training institutions. They also undergo on-the-jobtraining through attachment to a department for a certain period of time, after which
they are inducted into regular service.
The public (civil) service has an elaborate system of training at the middle and top
management level. This includes pre-entry training at Civil Service Academy, middle
level training at National Institute of Public Administration (one each in the four
provinces) and senior management training at Pakistan Administrative Staff College. A
vast majority of employees working at the operative level (BS-1 to BS-16) receive little
or no formal training to handle the assigned jobs. These employees work in local
government and rural development departments, the departments of health, agriculture,
planning and development and education at the provincial and federal levels.
Most of the government jobs, have no job description or specification.
Training even at the top and middle levels is done without TNA. At the operational
level, there is neither TNA nor training. And most training and development is
without analysis of jobs which is a pre-requisite for TNA to identify the areas in
which training is required. Training in public service requires comprehensive and
detailed analysis at all levels and for all jobs to build capacity.
Compensation and Performance Evaluation
Government jobs are the most secure jobs whether one delivers output/service
or not. One keeps receiving compensation and annual increment. Increment or raise
in salary is not contingent on performance. Public personnel receive salary,
4

The civil service comprise twelve Occupational Groups which are; District Management Group,
Office Management Group, Income Tax, Customs and Excise, Police Service, Railways, Accounts Group,
Foreign Service, Secretariat, Information.

922

Seemi Waheed

allowances etc. in 22 basic pay scales (BS). BS-1 includes such diverse jobs as
peons, sweepers, janitorial staff, bearers, security guards etc. The salary for all these
jobs is the same (Annex-1). Similarly there are jobs in BS-17 which are as diverse as
assistant superintendent police, computer programmer, researcher, doctor, engineer,
administrator etc. The salary for all these jobs is the same. This, illustrates that the
salary structure in public service is not commensurate with the nature of the job and
it is considered to be low as compared to that in the private sector.
Performance evaluation is the most bizarre in public service. From BS-16 to
BS-22, for all jobs there is one performance evaluation form Annex-II). Performance
variables on which employees are assessed are ambiguous and have little relevance
with the output of the employee. Objectives to be achieved by the employee during a
given period are not known. At the end of the period (year) assessment is based on a
general criteria, e.g., intelligence, integrity, quality of output etc. and not on the
achievement of objectives. As pointed out, jobs in public service are diverse,
therefore, performance (efficiency and effectiveness) need to be assessed on the
basis of achievement of objectives outlined for each job.
5. CONCLUSION
Capacity building in organisations requires the formulation of a mission
statement, goals and objectives. It is a pivotal activity, as far as the development of
organisational structure and HRMS is concerned.
It is a fact that goals and objectives in public sector organisations are elusive,
and seldom institutionalised. As a result employees do not share organisational
values and beliefs which are necessary to achieve its mission and goals.
The model for capacity building (Fig.1) helps understand the importance of each
step and variable in capacity building for organisation. However, constraints to the
application of models need to be taken into consideration. Specific constraints in
application of this model in a developing country situation are: (1) lack of commitment of
leadership to improve organisational capacity; (2) short-term and urgent (may be not
important) matters take priority over important ones; (3) interference in routine matters
by political leaders; (4) organisational procedure, rules etc. are tampered for personal
selfish interests; and (5) non-professional attitude dominating public sector organisation.
Even, if 20 percent5 of the constraints identified are overcome, in a given time frame,
considerable improvement in efficiency can occur.
There is need to redesign the performance evaluation system. However, in the
management of HRMS the important measures to be taken are: updating and modifying
the recruitment system; job analysis of all jobs in public sector; conducing TNA and
imparting training to undertake assignment according to the requirement of job.
Each variable of the model presented requires further research in the context
of the respective organisation for giving specific recommendations.
5
20 percent is based on 2080 Pareto Rule. According to the rule 80 percent of the wealth of the
world is in the hands of 20 percent of people. Similarly 20 percent. of people really work to give 80
percent of the output.

Capacity Building in Public Sector

923
Annexures

Annexure I
Basic Monthly Pay Scales
Minimum
(Rs)

Increment
(Rs)

Number of
Pay Points

Maximum
(Rs)

BPS-1

1,245

35

16

1,770

Sweeper

BPS-2

1,275

44

16

1,935

Quasid

BPS-3

1,320

50

16

2,070

Daftri

BPS-4

1,360

58

16

2,230

Dispatch Rider, Driver

BPS-5

1,400

66

16

2,390

Urdu Typist

BPS-6

1,440

73

16

2,535

BPS-7

1,480

81

16

2,695

BPS-8

1,540

88

16

2,860

BPS-9

1,605

97

16

3,060

BPS-10

1,660

107

16

3,265

BPS-11

1,725

116

16

3,465

BPS-12

1,830

130

16

3,780

Stenotypist

BPS-13

1,950

144

16

4,110

Accountant

BPS-14

2,065

161

16

4,480

BPS-15

2,190

177

16

4,845

Stenographer

BPS-16

2,535

197

16

5,490

Admin Officer

BPS-17

3,880

290

13

7,360

Private Secretary

BPS-18

5,085

366

11

8,745

Agronomist

BPS-19

7,750

385

11

11,600

Deputy Secretary,
Senior Agricultural Economists

BPS-20

9,195

440

11

13,595

Economic Consultant,
Joint Secretary

BPS-21

10,190

545

11

15,640

Senior Joint Secretary

BPS-22

10,900

610

11

17,000

Secretary

Pay Scale

Sample Position

Telex Operator

Seemi Waheed

924

Annexure II
CONFIDENTIAL
GOVERNMENT OF ___________________
_______
Name of The Ministry/Division/Department/Office) Name of Service...
PERFORMANCE EVALUATION REPORT
FOR THE PERIOD FROM

19

TO 19

PART I
1. Name (in block letters): .....................................................................................
2. Date of birth: Date of entry in Service: .................
3. BPS, with present pay: .......................................................................................
4. Post held during the period: ...............................................................................
5. Academic Qualifications: ..................................................................................
6. Knowledge of languages (Please indicate proficiency in speaking (S), reading
(R) and writing (W):
........................................................................................................................
7.
8.

9.

Hobbies: .........................................................................................................
Training Received:
Name of course
attended

Dates
From

To

Name of institution
and country

Job Description (Set out broadly in order of importance the main duties
performed. Also mention any special work assigned during the period):
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................

Capacity Building in Public Sector

10.

Period served:
(a)

11.

925

in present post

(b) under reporting officer...............

Date of last annual medical checkup.

Signature
The rating in Parts II & III and IV should be recorded by initialling the
appropriate box. The ratings denoted by alphabets is as follows:
A1 (Very Good), A (Good),
B (Average),
C (Below Average), D (Poor).
For uniform interpretation of qualities listed in these parts, two extreme
shades are mentioned against each item. Please see para 7 of instructions.
PART II
1. Intelligence
2. Confidence and
will power
3. Emotional
stability
4. Adaptability
5. Understanding
and tolerance

PERSONAL QUALITIES
A1 A B
Exceptionally bright;
Excellent comprehension
Exceptionally confident
and resolute
Mature; balanced

D
Dull; slow
Uncertain; hesitant
Unstable; immature

Alert and highly

responsible
Considerate and
Cooperative

Rigid, Inflexible
Lacks ability to
appreciate others
point of view; unsympathetic
Clumsy;
unimpressive

6. Appearance and
Creates excellent
bearing
impression
7. OVERALL GRADING IN PART II

PART III
ATTITUDES
A1

1. *Knowledge of Islam

Well read

2. *Attitude towards
Islamic ideology
3. Integrity
(a) General

Deeply motivated;
enlightened.

Narrow and
superficial
Indifferent;
intolerant

Irreproachable

Unscrupulous

Honest and straightforward

Devious;
sycophant

(b) Intellectual

Seemi Waheed

926

A1
4. Acceptance of
responsibility

Always prepared to
take on responsibility
even in difficult cases

5. Ability to produce
constructive ideas

Full of ideas; always

comes up with
ingenious solution to
problems; fertile
Anticipates problems
and plans ahead

6. Foresight

7. Initiative and Drive

8. Reliability under
pressure

9. Judgement

10. Financial
Responsibility
11. Perseverance and
devotion to duty
12. Relations with
(a) Superiors
(b) Colleagues
(c) Subordinates

13. Behaviour with

Public

D
Reluctant to take
on responsibility;
will avoid it
whenever possible
Dull; has to be
told what to think

Handles problems
only after they
arise
Timid and
diffident
Confused and
easily flustered
even under normal
pressures
Lacks balance and
consistency;
Immature
Irresponsible

Bold and enterprising;

dynamic
Imperturbable and exceptionally reliable at
all times
Makes consistently
sound proposals/
decisions
Exercises due care
discipline
Resolute; carries a task
through to the end

Negligent and
disinterested
Un-cooperative;
does not inspire
confidence
Difficult colleague
Brusque and
Intolerant; does
not earn respect
Haughty;
unsympathetic
and ill behaved

Cooperative; well
liked and trusted
Works well in a team
Courteous and
effective; inspires
confidence
Courteous and helpful

14. OVERALL GRADING IN PART III

* In case of non-mulsims the entries will refer to there own religion.

PART IV
PROFICIENCY IN JOB
A1
A
1. Power of Expression
(a) Written
(b) Oral

2. Knowledge of work

Always precise, clear

and well set out
Comes across
convincingly and
concisely
Has a thorough grasp
of the knowledge
relevant to his job

D
Clumsy and vague
Ineffective

Does not know

enough about the
present job

Capacity Building in Public Sector

A1
3. Analytical ability

4. Supervision and
Guidance
5. Ability to take decision
6. Work

(a) Output

Picks out the essentials

without wasting time
on irrelevant details
Organises and uses
staff and other
resources effectively
Very logical and
decisive
Always up-to-date;
accumulates no arrears

(b) Quality

Always produces work

of exceptionally high
quality
7. OVERALL GRADING IN PART IV

927
B

D
Seldom sees
below the surface
of a problem
Lacks control;
ineffective
Indecisive;
vacillating
Always behind
schedule; very
slow disposal
Generally
produces work of
poor quality

PART V

(a)

Pen-picture: Please comment on any particularly strong or weak points without

repeating earlier parts of the report. Also indicate the future posting considered
most suitable for the officer.

(b)

Counselling: Was the officer advised to improve vide instruction No. 4 during the
period under report? If so, on what aspects and with what results?

(c)

Assessment of performance: Please comment on how effective the officer has

been in performing the duties mentioned at S. No. 9 in Part I. Also comment on
the officers contribution to the overall performance of your office/organisation
especially in the light of any numerical measure e.g. examination results for
teaching staff or other applicable index such as profitability, project
implementation, tax collection etc. In other cases give your assessment of relative
proportion of (i) routine cases (ii) complicated cases/situations (iii) policy
cases/crisis situations dealt with by the officer. Also indicate whether further
training is required for increasing his effectiveness and if so, in which area.

Seemi Waheed

928

PART VI
Comparing him with other officers of the same level and keeping in view
the overall grading in Parts II, III and IV, give your general assessment of the officer
by initialling the appropriate box below:
(a) Overall Grading
By
Reporting
Officer
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)

By
Countersigning Officer

Equalled by very few officers

(Very Good):
Better than the majority of
officers (Good):
Equals the majority of officers
(Average):
Meets bare minimum standards
(Below Average):
Unsatisfactory (Poor):

(b) Fitness for promotion

By
Reporting
Officer
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)

By
Countersigning
Officer

Fit for accelerated promotion:

Fit for promotion in his turn:
Not yet fit for promotion:
Unlikely to progress further:

Name of the Reporting Officer . Signature ..

(Capital letters)

Designation Date

Capacity Building in Public Sector

929

PART VII
(a) REMARKS OF THE COUNTERSIGNING OFFICER
Please report on the aspects not touched upon by the Reporting Officer. If
you disagree with the assessment of the Reporting Officer, please give reasons
therefor. You should also indicate how frequently you have seen work of the officer
reported upon. If the officer has been assessed fit for promotion, would you be
prepared to accept him in the higher grade. If no, please give your reasons.

Name . Signature
(Capital letters)
Designation.. Date .
(b) REMARKS OF THE SECOND COUNTERSIGNING OFFICER (IF ANY)

Name . Signature
(Capital letters)
Designation.. Date .
PART VIII

1. Adverse remarks, if any, communicated vide .........................................

Date ..
2. Decision on representation, if any ..........................................................
.................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................

930

Seemi Waheed
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILLING UP THE ACR FORMS

1. (i) ACR is the most important record for the assessment of an officer. At the same time, the quality of
the ACR is a measure of the competence of the Reporting Officer and the Countersigning Officer.
It is, therefore, essential that utmost care is exercised by all Reporting and Countersigning
Officers.
(ii) The Reporting and Countersigning Officer should be
(a) as objective as possible; and
(b) clear and direct, not ambiguous or evasive in their remarks.
(iii) The over-riding importance of Part IV should be clearly understood in the overall grading.
(iv) Over-rating should be eschewed by all Reporting/Countersigning Officers.
(v) Vague impressions based on inadequate knowledge or isolated incidents should be avoided.
2. The forms are to be filled in duplicate. Part I will be filled by the officer being reported upon and
should be typewritten. Parts II to VI will be filled by the Reporting Officer, and Part VII by the
Countersigning Officers. Both the Reporting Officer and the Countersigning Officer should give their
assessment of the officer reported upon in respective boxes in Part V. The Ministry/Division/Department
concerned will fill Part-VIII, if any adverse remarks are recorded in the report.
3. Assessment in the ACR should be confined to the work done by the officer reported upon during the
period covered by the report.
4. The Reporting Officer is expected to counsel the officer being reported upon about his/her weak
points and advise him/her on how to improve. Adverse remarks should normally be recorded when the
officer fails to improve despite counselling.
5. The ACR form should be filled in a neat and tidy manner. Cuttings/erasures should be avoided and
where made, must be initialled.
6. The ratings in Parts II, III, IV and VI should be recorded by initialling the appropriate box.
7. For uniform interpretation of qualities etc. listed in Parts II, III and IV, the two extreme shades are
mentioned against each item. For example an exceptionally bright officer with excellent
comprehension will be rated A1 in Intelligence (box-I of Part II). A dull and slow officer will merit a
D rating. A, B and C ratings will denote shades between the above two extremes.
8. The ratings should be clear and given in one of the boxes provided for the purpose in Parts II, III, IV
& VI. Do not grade an officer between the two shades i.e. between Very Good and Good or Good
and Average or Average and Below Average.
9. The Countersigning Officer should weigh the remarks of the Reporting Officer against his/her
personal knowledge of the officer being reported upon, compare him/her with other officers of the same
grade working under different Reporting Officers but under the same Countersigning Officer, and then
give his/her overall assessment in Part VI and remarks in Part VII (a). In certain categories of cases
remarks of a Second Countersigning Officer may also be required to be recorded. The Establishment
Division will identify such cases from time to time and also designate an officer as the Second
Countersigning Officer for each category. The Second Countersigning Officer will record his remarks in
Part VII (b).
10. If the Countersigning Officer differs with the grading or remarks given (in parts other than Part VI) by
the Reporting Officer, he/she should score it out and give his/her own grading in red ink. In Part VI he/she
is required to give his/her own assessment in addition to that of the Reporting Officer.
11. The Countersigning Officer should underline, in red ink, the remarks which in his opinion are adverse
and should be communicated to the officer reported upon.

Capacity Building in Public Sector

931

REFERENCES
Boeninger, Edgardo (1992) Governance and Development Issues and Constraints.
Proceedings of the World Bank Annual Conference on Development Economics.
Bhatt, Anil, and Carino V. Ledwina et al. (1987) Building from Below: Local
Initiatives for Decentralised Development in Asia and Pacific. KAS and APDC,
pp. 1723.
Edralin, Josefa S. (1996-97) The New Local Governance and CapacityBuilding: A
Strategic Approach Examples from Africa, Asia and Latin America. Regional
Development Studies 3: Winter. p. 109.
Kiggundu, N. Moses (1989) Managing Organisation in Developing Countries: An
Operation and Strategic Approach. Kumarian Press
Leftwich, Adrian (1993) Governance, Democracy and Development in the Third
World. Third World Quarterly 14:3.
Sharitz, M. Jay, and Ott. Steven J. (1987) Classics of Organisation Theory. Pacific
Grove, California: Brook/Cole Publishing Co.
World Bank (1993) The East Asian Miracle: Economic Growth and Public Policy.
Oxford University Press. (World Bank Policy Research Report.)
Wright, Peter, Kroll M. J., and Parnell John (1996) Strategic Management: Cases
and Concept. N.J. Prentice Hall. 188191.

Comments
Ms Seemi Waheeds paper, Capacity Building for Public Sector
Organisations, is an interesting and timely paper. The underlying argument is that
there is need for a new model for capacity building in public sector organisations.
Capacity building, as she rightly points out, is part of the literature on governance,
good governance, in fact. After reviewing some of the major works on capacity
building, particularly those of Boeninger and Cohen. Ms Waheed constructs a model
(Fig. 1) comprising largely conceptual and theoretical concerns. In this model,
mission statement, i.e., organisational mission statement is a basic component. In
fact, she goes on to claim that: the mission statement is the independent variable on
which all the other variables and sub-variables are dependent. It is assumed that once
the organisation formulates clear mission statement, goals and objectives it would be
relatively easier to develop appropriate structure and HRMS (Human Resource
Management System) to achieve goals. Here, I have no problem with her emphasis
on the mission statement. In fact, I agree with her. However, I fail to understand as to
why she insists on calling the mission statement an independent variable on which
all the other variables and sub-variables are dependent. In my opinion, other
variables will cease to be independent variables if they are dependent on the
mission statement. Independent variables are independent variables because they are
independent of each other. Only then they can possibly explain a dependent
variable, such as capacity building, in the present case.
In highlighting the nature and importance of the mission statement, Ms
Waheed offers a variety of suggestions as to what it shall imply; what kind of goals
will follow from it, and what type of objectives will ensue. This is fine. However,
there is a rub. The emphasis all along is on the managerial input functions. There is
little mention of outputs. In this sense, the whole argument is more about
management than development and change. And although Ms Waheed talks about
work ethics for promotion of good governance, in the context of the mission
statement, she does not quite define or build on these ethics. The emphasis seems
to be on the job well done rather than on vocation, duty and service, which are
increasingly being recognised as essential roles in the new field of development
administration. I assume work ethics must also include an attitudinal shift in public
sector organisations from preoccupation with rank, status and privilege to respect
towards the common man. A common mans viewpoint needs to be understood and
taken into account in arriving at decisions affecting his life and future. Indeed, a
harmonious relationship between the rulers and the ruled is an integral part of good
governance.

Comments

933

In her discussion with regard to the structure of public organisations, Ms

Waheed makes a very pertinent point. She stresses that government structures are
generally monolithic in character, irrespective of what business particular
organisation is pursuing. One way out, she suggests, is decentralisation which is
right and is the subject of much discussion in Pakistan today. But then, I believe,
decentralisation should not be the end of administrative organisations. It must
rather be means to an effective developmental bureaucracy, which is both
responsible and accountable to the people and is committed to the mammoth task
of nation-building.
Interestingly, Ms Waheed does not propose any measures to cut back the
scope of government activities through privatisation and private solutions, especially
in education, health, population, and other social sectors. Indeed, there is no proposal
suggesting reduction in the nature and scope of the centralised administrative
apparatus in the public sector. This omission is all the more significant given the fact
that the so-called de-bureaucratisation is the dominant trend of the 1990s. In terms
of performance evaluation and compensation, I agree with Ms Waheed that salaries
in the public sector are considerably low compared to the private sector. There must
be rewards and incentives for good work, and, here, I also agree with her that it must
be judged thorough the achievement of objectives. But, I also feel that there must
be punishment, too, for non-performance. This will discourage the trend of evasions
and delay in the implementation of major decisions. Part of the problem may be
cultural. Although senior government employees are recruited on merit and
competition, some remain tied to their formative influences, such as family, kinship,
region, ethnicity, etc. That may make it difficult for them to take timely decisions.
But non-performance is not the only problem. There is a more serious problem of
misuse of powers, especially discretionary powers given to the employees to regulate
state and social sectors. This increased regulatory authority creates opportunities for
making money, and hence corrupt practices and corruption. But it cannot be denied
that corruption can exist only if there is someone willing to corrupt. The public
demands a high standard of integrity in public organisations and bureaucracy, but, at
the same time, condones unethical and immoral practices among themselves. The
materialistic way of life has a tendency to corrupt all.
This brings us to the issue of accountability, especially in the context of
public policy and administration. Generally, officials are considered accountable to
the extent that they are legally required to answer for their policies and actions. In
other words, accountability remains confined to the legality of administrative
actions. Other aspects of accountability, such as organisational and professional
behaviour, financial prudence and correctness of decisions are not taken into
account. It is only when we look at accountability in its totality, including
administrative, professional, legal, financial and moral aspects, that we can hope to
secure a good public organisation and good government.

934

Sikandar Hayat

At the end of her paper, Ms Seemi Waheed concedes that her model for
capacity building has a number of constraints to contend with, particularly in a
developing country situation, which must obviously include Pakistan. One of them
pertains to interference in routine (or not so routine) matters by political leaders. The
point is well taken. The experience of last 50 years bears testimony to it. Either the
public organisations responded to political demands or the politicians simply
bypassed the established administrative systems and procedures and created their
own networks to achieve their goals. Public organisations thus became a source of
administrative mismanagement, economic ills and political blundering. The result
was despair and distrust of the people who charged that both politicians and
administrators were not capable of running the machinery of government properly.
The separation of politics from administration is embedded in the theory of public
administration. It must remain so in practice as well.
Sikandar Hayat
Quaid-i-Azam University,
Islamabad.