The Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development And Transparency � PILDAT, under its Legislative Capability-building Programme, held a Briefing Session for parliamentarians on the topic of Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper on June 23, 2003 at Hotel Marriott, Islamabad. The briefing session was partly supported by the World Bank.

PILDAT Briefing Session on PRSP was arranged to raise the awareness of legislators about the PRSP process, and to give them relevant information so they can contribute more significantly in its development and monitoring. The main objective of the session was to enable Parliamentarians to review the upcoming final PRSP with the aim of ensuring that it represents the interests of their constituents.

The briefing session was attended by fifty three (53) parliamentarians, both Senators and Members of the National Assembly. A Profile of Participants, complete with their party, gender and provincial break up is included in the report.

There was unanimous agreement that the final PRSP should be presented to the Parliament for approval. A feedback form was distributed amongst the participants, and all the participants indicated that a special standing committee on Poverty Reduction should be formed in the National Assembly and Senate. The participants also expressed their gratitude for the opportunity of learning about the crucial issue of Poverty reduction. They felt that the material provided to them through the Dossier and in the shape of the Briefing Paper would be especially useful in helping them acquire a greater understanding of PRSP and prepare them for debate in the Parliament.