How can the judicious utilization of allocated funds be ensured when information about total allocated funds and the funds spent by different district departments is not available to citizens?

Under Section 5 (1) (g) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Act 2013, a public body is bound to proactively share information about its budget. Do public bodies raise demand for the availability of funds for proactive disclosure of information as required by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Act 2013? What are legal requirements of public bodies with regard to ensuring public participation in different phases of budget for each financial year?

For example, according to budget calendar that is part of the District or City District Government Budget Rules 2016, deputy commissioner must carry out “Review, consolidation and pre-budget meetings” before 20^th of April

Similarly, as mentioned in PART II of the Budget Rules “FUNCTIONS OF THE OFFICERS RELATING TO BUDGET”, Head of offices have responsibility to “consult with communities through pre-budget and other relevant forums to verify and fine tune sectoral requirements, and take note of any additional weaknesses or gaps identified by communities”

It is in this context that Right to Information Commission Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives, (CPDI) are   holding a seminar on ‘RTI Legislation and Budget Transparency’ on December 29, 2016 at PC Hotel, Peshawar from 02:30 pm to 05:00 pm.