Capacity Building Workshop – Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act 2013: Promoting Good Governance & Civic Participation.
Venue: District Rajanpur, Punjab Date: Tuesday, February 17, 2026

Transparency International Pakistan in collaboration with Sangtani Women Rural Development Organization, District Rajanpur, organized a Capacity Building Workshop on the Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act 2013. Held on february 17, 2026, the workshop aimed to raise an awareness among citizens about the Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act 2013 and to strengthen their ability to use it as an effective tool for good governance and civic participation.

The workshop brought together 41 participants, including 26 men, 14 women, and one person with disability. The participants included general citizens and civil society representatives from district Rajanpur, Punjab. The event began with the recitation of the Holy Quran. Afterwards, participants took a pre-test to assess their knowledge of the provincial RTI Act.

Mr. Sabtain Akbar Khan, Executive Director, Sangtani Women Rural Development Organization welcomed the participants and spoke on “Importance of RTI for Good Governance and Salient Features of the Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act, 2013,” He informed the participants that the Act empowers citizens to ask questions from public institutions and demand transparency in matters affecting their lives. He explained that the law guarantees every citizen in Punjab the legal right to access information from public bodies under Article 19-A of the Constitution.

Furthermore, he mentioned that every government department is required to appoint a Public Information Officer (PIO) to whom citizens can submit written requests for information. In cases where a department has not designated a PIO, the Head of Department is responsible for providing the requested information. According to Section 5 of the Act, the PIO must provide the requested information within 10 working days. However, if additional time is required, the PIO may extend the period by up to 14 additional working days.

He further clarified that if a PIO rejects an application under Sections 10 or 13 of the Act, refuses to provide information, fails to respond within the prescribed time, or provides incomplete or misleading information, the response must be given in writing. He further highlighted that incase of the non-provision of the information, Punjab RTI Act provides two remedy options, applicant filing an internal review within 60 days by submitting a written application to the Head of Department. The Head of Department must decide the matter within 14 days and may confirm, modify, or reverse the PIO’s decision.

In addition, an applicant can also file a complaint with the Punjab Information Commission if the information is wrongly denied, delayed, refused or not proactively disclosed. The Commission must decide complaints within 30 days and, in exceptional cases, within a maximum of 60 days. Moreover, the Punjab Information Commission may also impose a penalty on a PIO who, without reasonable cause refuses to accept an application, fails to provide information within the prescribed time, or knowingly provides incorrect or incomplete information. The fine can range up to two days’ salary for each day of delay, subject to a maximum of fifty thousand rupees.

Following the session, participants were divided into small groups for hands on experience to draft sample RTI applications. Participants identified local governance and public service delivery issues,. With the support of facilitators, each group prepared and presented its draft application,

making the exercise practical and interactive. Most of the applications focused on education, healthcare, local governance, water supply, agriculture, women’s rights, and infrastructure related issues.

Next, Ms. Naiama Azeem, Gender Specialist at Sangtani Women Rural Development Organization spoke on the important of Right to Information as a tool for civic participation in the decision making process. She highlighted that using RTI, citizens can ensure that public funds such as allocations for school books, furniture, and local development projects are used properly and for the benefit of the citizens. In doing so, RTI and the disclosure of information acts as a bridge against corruption and empowers citizens to act as oversight for utilization of public funds. The interactive session also enabled participants to share their ideas on how the use of RTI can promote transparency and accountability within their communities.

At the end of the workshop, a post-test was conducted to measure participants’ learning. The results showed an improvement in understanding of the RTI Act, its application and usage.