Interesting news from Pakistan's Dawn newspaper today... The article linked from the post title above indicates that - for the first time in the nation's history - Pakistan's defense budget has been put before Parliament. In previous years, a single overall budget figure was all that was made available - but now MPs have a more detailed breakdown of defense expenditure plans, not just for the current year but for the following one too. This has allowed for some parliamentary debate, albeit only for a couple of hours this time. But, as evidenced by the Dawn article, it has also allowed for greater public scrutiny. The move by Pakistan's government has been widely applauded, not least as it brings the promise of yet greater transparency in this and other areas of public life in the longer term. It also offers a valuable example to all those countries in which key areas of pubic expenditure, including defense, remain a closed book.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
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