P&D FAQs

The Planning & Development Department is the Government of Sindh's principal institution for development planning, public investment planning, coordination and appraisal of development projects, preparation and management of the Annual Development Programme (ADP), and monitoring and evaluation of development projects. Under the Sindh Government Rules of Business, the Planning & Development Board/Department coordinates activities of Government departments in the economic field and processes matters relating, among others, to economic policy, development schemes and major capital outlays, schemes included in development plans, matters affecting more than one sector of the provincial economy, and new expenditure of a development nature. P&D therefore does not itself execute every development project. Generally, the concerned Administrative/Line Department is responsible for sponsoring, executing, operating and maintaining a project, while P&D performs planning, appraisal, coordination, prioritization, approval-related and monitoring functions according to the applicable rules and procedures. The P&D Department was established in Sindh on 1 July 1970 and was subsequently restructured as the Planning & Development Board in 2017.

The P&D Department plans, designs, and monitors public sector development projects such as schools, hospitals, water supply schemes, and inter-city roads that directly impact your community's infrastructure and socio-economic wellbeing.

The Annual Development Programme (ADP) is the Government of Sindh's annual portfolio of public-sector development projects and programmes together with their planned financial allocations. It translates the Government's development priorities, sectoral strategies and policy objectives into specific investments in areas such as education, health, roads, irrigation, water supply, agriculture, energy, social development and other sectors. The ADP includes both ongoing and new schemes, subject to the applicable formulation, scrutiny, prioritization and approval procedures. The P&D Department is the custodian of the provincial ADP and coordinates its formulation with the Administrative Departments and other relevant institutions. The P&D website publishes successive ADPs and ADP formulation guidelines and proformas so that stakeholders can examine the province's development portfolio.

A project normally originates with the concerned Administrative/Line Department, based on an identified development need, sectoral priority, policy objective, feasibility assessment and availability of resources. The sponsoring department prepares the required project documentation—normally a PC-I, and where required a PC-II feasibility study—and submits it through the prescribed process. The project is then subjected to the required technical, financial, economic, social, environmental and other scrutiny. For projects requiring consideration by P&D, the relevant Technical Section examines the proposal and, where applicable, it proceeds through the Pre-PDWP and PDWP process. Projects involving federal funding, foreign assistance or other arrangements may require consideration by the appropriate federal forum. During ADP formulation, projects are considered in the context of Government priorities, available fiscal space, existing commitments, implementation capacity, project readiness and other applicable criteria. The Planning Manual emphasizes that projects should be aligned with sector priorities and that greater attention should be given to completing ongoing projects rather than indiscriminately adding new schemes.

Projects are prioritized based on strategic socio-economic value, alignment with provincial growth targets, completion requirements for ongoing works (allocating up to 80% of funds to existing schemes), and regional equity guidelines.

A citizen may identify a genuine public-development need and approach the relevant Administrative/Line Department, elected representative or other competent public institution, but inclusion of a scheme in the ADP is not an automatic entitlement. A proposed project must be examined against Government priorities, sectoral requirements, technical feasibility, location and need, duplication with existing facilities, estimated cost, financing requirements, implementation capacity and other applicable criteria. The formal project proposal is prepared and sponsored by the concerned Government department or competent public agency. It must then pass through the prescribed planning, appraisal and approval process before implementation and, where applicable, ADP allocation. The purpose of this process is to ensure that scarce public resources are directed towards projects that are justified, feasible, sustainable and capable of delivering measurable public benefits.

A PC-I (Planning Commission-I) is the principal project-preparation document used for development projects in Pakistan, including provincial development projects in Sindh. It establishes the project's need, objectives, location, scope, cost, financing arrangements, implementation schedule, expected outputs and outcomes, benefits, institutional arrangements, risks and monitoring indicators, together with the relevant technical, financial, economic, social and environmental information. A PC-I is essential because it provides the basis for deciding whether a proposed project is justified and viable and for obtaining approval from the competent development forum. As stated in the Sindh Planning Manual, without an approved PC-I, development funds cannot ordinarily be released for implementation of the project. The P&D website provides PC-I forms for infrastructure, social and production-sector projects.

Project appraisal is more than checking the estimated cost. It is intended to determine whether the proposed investment is technically sound, financially sustainable, economically justified and capable of achieving its intended development results. Depending on the nature of the project, appraisal considers: • Strategic justification and alignment with sector priorities; • Need and demand for the proposed intervention; • Technical design, location, capacity and implementation methodology; • Capital and recurring costs; • Financing arrangements and availability of resources; • Financial and economic viability; • Cost-effectiveness and alternatives; • Social benefits and distributional impacts; • Environmental and climate considerations; • Land, utilities and other implementation prerequisites; • Institutional and management capacity; • Implementation schedule and risks; • Sustainability and arrangements for operation and maintenance; and • Results-Based Monitoring (RBM) indicators. The Planning Manual specifically identifies financial, economic, technical, social, environmental, managerial and organizational considerations as important components of project appraisal.

Development projects are approved by the competent development forum according to the applicable financial limits, source of financing and nature of the project. Under the framework reproduced in the 2023 Sindh Planning Manual, the principal forums include: • District Development Committee (DDC) — Up to Rs. 40 million for projects funded from District ADP • Divisional Development Board (DDB) — Up to Rs. 60 million for projects funded from District ADP • Departmental Development Working Party (DDWP) — Up to Rs. 200 million from Provincial ADP • Pre-PDWP — Scrutiny/clearance forum for projects proceeding to PDWP • Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) — Above Rs. 200 million up to Rs. 10 billion for projects exclusively financed from provincial resources • CDWP / ECNEC — Applicable to projects falling within the federal approval/clearance framework These limits are subject to subsequent notifications, amendments and the source and nature of project financing. Projects involving foreign assistance, federal co-financing or other special circumstances may follow a different approval route. The website should therefore maintain a live "Approval Forums & Current Financial Powers" page, linked to the latest notification, rather than displaying the limits as permanently fixed figures.

The Pre-PDWP is primarily a detailed scrutiny forum/process for projects that fall within the purview of the Provincial Development Working Party. The relevant P&D Technical Section examines the PC-I and prepares a working paper. The Pre-PDWP reviews the proposal and may clear it, recommend amendments, seek additional information or defer it. Once observations are addressed, the proposal can proceed for consideration by the PDWP. The PDWP is the provincial approving forum for development projects falling within its delegated financial and institutional competence. Under the current framework reflected in the Planning Manual, PDWP can approve provincially financed projects up to the prescribed threshold. In simple terms: Pre-PDWP scrutinizes; PDWP decides within its delegated authority.

No. ADP inclusion and project approval are related but distinct processes. Ideally, the ADP should contain approved projects. However, under the planning framework, a project may in certain circumstances be reflected as an "unapproved" scheme while its formal approval is being processed. An unapproved project cannot simply be treated as an approved project merely because it appears in the ADP. Its release and implementation remain subject to obtaining the required approval from the competent forum and fulfilling the applicable procedural requirements. The Planning Manual specifically distinguishes between approved and unapproved projects and states that releases for an unapproved scheme are contingent upon formal approval by the competent authority.

Approval of a project does not mean that its entire approved cost is automatically released at once. Following the required approval and administrative formalities, funds are released in accordance with the annual budget allocation, Government's fund-release policy, cash position, execution pattern, financial utilization and other applicable conditions. The Planning Manual provides that the line department/project manager submits the request for release through the prescribed channel. The Finance Department scrutinizes the request against the budget provision, ADP status, approval and other procedural requirements. Development funds are normally released to executing departments on a quarterly basis, subject to the prevailing Government policy and fiscal position. Therefore, an approved project may have an approved multi-year cost while receiving annual allocations and releases according to the Government's financial resources and implementation requirements.

ADP inclusion does not guarantee completion within a particular year. A project may face constraints relating to availability of funds, land acquisition, procurement, litigation, utilities, site conditions, implementation capacity, design changes, cost escalation, delayed releases or other technical and administrative issues. The Planning Manual identifies inadequate cash-flow forecasting, slow releases, weak implementation capacity, cost overruns, land problems, litigation and procurement issues among common causes of implementation difficulties. The Manual also emphasizes realistic financial phasing and implementation schedules and requires project authorities to assess whether delays have materially changed the project's cost or scope. For transparency, the redesigned website should show each project separately with approved cost, annual allocation, expenditure, physical progress, financial progress, revised cost/time, implementation status and major recorded issues, wherever such information is available.

Monitoring is the systematic collection and analysis of information about ongoing projects to determine whether implementation is progressing according to the approved scope, cost, schedule and targets. The Planning Manual distinguishes monitoring from evaluation: monitoring primarily takes place during implementation, while evaluation assesses results and impacts after completion, although evaluation findings may also support corrective action during implementation. Project monitoring may examine: • Physical progress against approved targets; • Financial progress and expenditure; • Implementation schedule; • Achievement of outputs and RBM indicators; • Compliance with the approved PC-I; • Quality and status of works/assets; • Procurement and implementation issues; • Bottlenecks and risks; and • Corrective actions required. P&D's Monitoring & Evaluation Cell (MEC) and relevant Technical Sections play important roles in this process. The Manual also provides for monitoring systems, reporting formats and third-party monitoring/evaluation arrangements.

These are different project-monitoring and evaluation instruments used during and after the project lifecycle: PC-III – Progress Monitoring Report: Used for reporting the physical and financial progress of a project during implementation. PC-IV – Project Completion Report: Prepared immediately after completion of the project, regardless of whether project accounts have been formally closed. It compares the approved project objectives, scope, cost, implementation period and targets with actual achievements and records issues, lessons and arrangements for sustainability. PC-V – Annual Performance Report after Completion: Used for post-completion evaluation of the project's operational performance and outcomes. The prescribed framework provides for annual reporting after completion over the subsequent five years. The Sindh Planning Manual states that a project should not be regarded as formally closed until the required PC-IV has been submitted. It also provides for selection of projects for performance evaluation and PC-V evaluation.

Project completion and project closure are not simply the same as stopping construction or spending the allocated funds. The sponsoring/executing agency initiates closure and prepares the PC-IV after completion. The process includes determining the final approved completion date, preparing and technically clearing the PC-IV, submitting it to P&D, updating the project's status, identifying the agency responsible for operation and maintenance, and addressing the disposal or transfer of project assets. The Planning Manual expressly provides that no project shall stand closed until its PC-IV has been submitted. The completed project then becomes subject to post-completion evaluation through the PC-V process. This ensures that Government can determine not only whether a project was physically completed, but also whether it delivered the outputs and outcomes for which public funds were invested.

Yes. Public access to information is an important part of transparency in public investment. The P&D website provides public access to ADPs, project documents, reports, notifications, policies and other development-related information. The Department's project documentation section includes PC-I, PC-II, PC-III, PC-IV, PC-V and other prescribed formats. In addition, the Sindh Transparency and Right to Information Act, 2016 establishes a legal framework through which citizens can seek access to information held by public authorities, subject to the Act's provisions and exemptions. The Act expressly aims to provide citizens with access to information in a rapid and low-cost manner and promotes transparency and accountability in public affairs. The redesigned P&D website should therefore go beyond merely uploading PDF documents and provide a searchable Public Development Information Portal, allowing citizens to search a project by district, department, sector, project name, project code, approved cost, annual allocation, expenditure, status and progress.

Citizens can view real-time data, financial allocations, and physical progress updates through the public tracking portals and the Monitoring & Evaluation Cell (MEC) Sindh dashboard hosted on the P&D website. See the Development Portfolio section on this site and the MEC dashboard at https://mecsindh.gov.pk/.

Grievances and implementation complaints can be lodged directly via the Citizen Feedback Portal integrated into the new P&D web interface, which routes inquiries to the relevant monitoring cells or district project directors. Use the Write to Us form at /contact/write-to-us or contact the Grievance Redressal Officer at grievance@pd-sindh.gov.pk.

Yes, the P&D Department practices open governance; summary volumes of the Annual Development Programme, strategy papers, and evaluation reports are downloadable from the public info section of the website.

Line departments must prepare project proformas according to standard guidelines, clear internal technical vetting, and submit them digitally through the integrated Sindh Development Portfolio Management System for review by fora like the Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP).

The Foreign Assistance Section (FAS) handles donor coordination, aligning multi-lateral and bi-lateral partner portfolios with provincial development strategies and monitoring adherence to grant or loan covenants.

MEC utilizes digital field monitoring tools, PMS integration, and independent third-party evaluations to measure physical progress, target achievements, and developmental outcomes, reporting findings directly to the P&D Board and Administrative Departments.