Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has raised questions over the mechanism used for finalisation of ministries for awarding “performance” certificates by Prime Minister Imran Khan and sought an early response from Peer Review Committee (PRC) on his “serious” concerns with a view “to engage meaningfully in future review process.”

Through a letter, addressed to Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Establishment Shehzad Arbab and copy has also been forwarded to Secretary to the Prime Minister, PM Office, dated February 11, 2022, the foreign minister noted with serious concern that the ranking by the PRC does not correspond to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA)’ demonstrated performance against the set targets.

In the letter, Qureshi referred to the Performance Award Ceremony held at the Prime Minister’s Office on 10 February 2022, and stated that while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been reckoned at 11th number among performing ministries, “I note with serious concern that this ranking by the PRC does not correspond to the ministry’s demonstrated performance against the targets set in the Performance Agreement (PA).” To substantiate his assertion, Qureshi citied that of 26 targets set for the 1stQuarter of the Performance Agreement, 22 targets were fully achieved by the MoFA.

Of the remaining targets, one was at 75-99 percent of completion stage and three were delayed for reasons explained to the PRC on 27 October 2021. “I was informed by your letter of 22’ November (copy enclosed) that the average completion rate of all ministries was 62% whereas MoFA had achieved 77 % rate of target completion in the 1stQuarter.”

Of 24 targets set for the 2nd Quarter, Qureshi wrote that 18 were fully achieved. Among the remaining targets, four were at 75-99 percent of completion stage due to pendency on the part of other Ministries/Departments, and two could not be pursued at all for reasons explained to PRC on 12 January 2022, he further wrote, adding that the PRC confirmed that target completion rate of the ministry was 89.2 percent quantitatively (62.5 of 70 weightage-wise). He added that the MoFA ensured that there was no pendency on its part during the review period.

In addition to demonstrating sustained commitment towards achieving the targets locked in the Performance Agreement, the foreign minister added that the MOFA also completed several High Impact Activities during the review period, which were not envisaged at the time of finalization of the Agreement.

These include post-15 August 2021 Afghanistan-focused diplomatic outreach, help in evacuations of stranded foreigners and other initiatives, were shared with the PRC by the Foreign Secretary on 12 January 2022. “Hosting of Extra Ordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers at a short notice of 45 days was the landmark achievement of the Ministry during the review period and was duly acknowledged by the Prime Minister,” Qureshi further wrote.

He added that no concern was raised about the quality of MOFA’s initiatives/targets at the time of final approval of the Performance Agreement by PRC or at the time of Peer Review. “The belated introduction of rating of ministries by the PRC through quantitative weightage (70 percent — based on achievement of PA targets) and qualitative weightage (30 percent — PRC’s discretionary marks) raises some fundamental questions on the mechanism of Peer Review of the Performance Agreement,” Qureshi stated.

The foreign minister raised questions/concerns which he stated are critical to ensure transparency and fairness in the Peer Review process, saying that no written modalities/guidelines for the 30 percent qualitative review process have been shared with the ministries. “What benchmarks were used by the PRC members for qualitative evaluation?” he asked.

He added that the criteria/competencies used for membership of the PRC are not clear/shared.

“The TORS of PRC are also not notified. What is basis for having permanent members of PRC?” he posed another question, adding that international best practices for peer review processes do not involve permanent members.

“Given the significance the Foreign Office attaches to the Performance Agreement and its strong commitment to achieving the envisaged targets, an early response to the above-mentioned observations/concerns and queries would enable us to engage meaningfully in the future review process of the Performance Agreement,” Qureshi further wrote.

This report was first published in Business Recorder on February 12, 2022.