In July, the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) with the assistance of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (UK) promoted a program titled “Building Support for Models of Local Democracy within a Federal System" at an event in Karachi, Pakistan. This is against the backdrop of suspended local government in the country and the ongoing legislative process in Pakistan which has resulted in responsibility for local government shifting the federal government to provinces.  The programme has facilitated study visits to Canada and South Africa to enable Provincial Ministers and senior officials to explore effective elected local government within federal systems in other Commonwealth countries. It aimed to provide support, innovations and momentum to the important legislative process which is on-going in Pakistan. The national seminar, organized by CLGF in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat, Government of Sindh and the City District Government Karachi (CDGK) took place from 6-7 July, in Karachi and brought together a cross section of provincial representatives, local government practitioners and specialists, representatives from development organizations, the South African Local Government Association, NGOs and academic institutions, and provided a forum for debate and discussion.

Representatives discussed in depth the findings from the study visits and developed a series of practical recommendations to support the legislative process and to strengthen local government in the future.

The embryonic local councils associations from the provinces in Pakistan attended the seminar. They are working together with the Local Government Group (England and Wales) under the Good Practice Scheme to strengthen their structures and particularly their role in advocacy on behalf of elected local government. One way in which the national dissemination seminar recommendations will be followed up in the UK is through an event to highlight the challenges facing local government in Pakistan and to encourage UK practitioners, particularly from the diaspora community to lend their support to the campaign to ensure that new provincial legislation makes provision for an empowered and democratically elected local government in Pakistan.