s distribution company, will be offered for sale to investors. The government is also considering restructuring the Oil and Gas Development Corporation and natural gas tariffs will be adjusted to achieve a rate of return on assets as agreed with the World Bank. Environmental issues One of the most pressing issues in sustainable development for Pakistan is the strengthening and improved monitoring and enforcement of environmental protection. The areas of concern include the inability of provincial environmental protection agencies to design cost-effective strategies for the enforcement of National Environmental Quality Standards and other provisions of the Environmental Protection Ordinance, and the absence of a pollution control system. The steps that are to be taken over the program period include the development of provincial capacity for monitoring and enforcement, the implementation of mass awareness programs, the development of a comprehensive pollution control and environmental impact assessment system, and the increased enforcement of compliance by the industrial sector with sound pollution control. Government The effectiveness of the government in public expenditures is limited and contributes to poor economic performance, low investment, and inadequate social services. The politicization of routine decision making has weakened the civil service and diverted expenditures to lower-priority activities. To prevent this, the government is to downsize itself to a reasonable number of staff so as to increase its processing efficiency. Statistical issues In addition to plans for the improvement of the quality and timeliness of data on public expenditures, the government is to address remaining deficiencies in the economic database of Pakistan: in national accounts, through Public enterprise reform During the course of 1997/98, seven major public sector enterprises developed plans to restructure their operations and to improve their fin...
