When we talk about the problems with governance and institutions in Pakistan. People usually focus on things like interference, corruption and not having enough money. There is another issue that is not as obvious, and it is hurting the public sector in Pakistan from the inside. This issue is called “Project-Hoping”.it happens when international donors work with government to start the development projects that only last for a short time. To run these projects, they hire technical and managerial people in the country by offering them a lot of money, sometimes even in dollars, which is much more than what the standard civil services can offer. However, the reality is that these projects are usually for a short time. When the money runs out or the projects end the people who were hired do not become part of government staff. This creates a group of skilled professionals who spend their whole careers jumping from one project to another without even being part of the permanent state institutions that really need their skills. The state does this by borrowing ideas and expertise from places instead of learning and growing on its own. This way of doing things is not permanent. It is what the state does. The problem with this is that the people in the state never really feel like they own the policies that affect their country. The country’s development plans are always controlled by outsiders, which means that the state does not have control over its development. The state needs to start building its expertise so it can make its own decisions about development. Understand why project -hoping has become the norm for the mind in Pakistan we need to look at the big difference in pay between the traditional civil service and the donor – funded projects. The traditional civil service has a set pay scale and even people with degrees or special skills do not get paid much. Their pay only increases slowly based on how they have been working and other factors. On the other hand, when a donor-funded project is started it can offer much higher pay, sometimes five to ten times more than what a regular employee can earn. They join a system that is well funded and separate from the regular state department but never become part of them. The life of a project consultant in Pakistan marked by insecurity even if they seem successful. As the project is near to end their focus shifts to finding the next assignment. This is when the actual project hoping starts. This constant movement prevents them from becoming experts in any one area. They become good at managing, writing or other skill but not at solving Pakistan’s long-term problems. The worst effect of “Project – Hoping” is that it destroys the memory of Pakistani state. The donors dependent project model breaks this chain. When a project ends the system and knowledge created by consultants are handed over to the staff, but they are not equipped to use them. When a new donor comes to solve the same problem, they scratch hiring new consultants and creating new system. This cycle repeats, wasting millions of dollars ’often talk about the brain drain of Pakistan’s mind leaving the country. Project-Hoping is a kind of internal brain drain. where the best talent is sucked out of the permanent state structure. This internal drain also affects the job market. New graduates don’t want to join the service because the pay is low and the work is not challenging; they learn to speak the language of donor projects using Buzzwords like ‘development goals” and “logical frameworks” so they can get hired for temporary projects. State loses its supply of idealistic and highly educated young professionals. The public sector is in a spot because it does not have enough modern leaders. The public sector needs people who can lead and make decisions, but it is not getting them.
To fix the Project-Hoping syndrome we need to change how international development assistance works with the state. Donors should give money to support the budget rather than just funding projects. The government should reform its pay system to attract and keep talent offering stable careers and reasonable pay. We need to change how we evaluate performance of donors. Until we fix this gap and make talent a part of our institutions Pakistan’s government will keep running on survival mode. It will always depend on short-term projects. This stops progress and makes our government departments find quick solutions to daily problems instead of planning for a better future, with professional help. We need to institutionalize talent to make Pakistan’s state machinery work properly.
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