IBCC Act

• This Act shall be called the Inter Boards Coordination Commission Act, 2023.
•  It shall come into force at once.
• It shall apply to all boards of intermediate and secondary education and authorized examining bodies, wherever they may be operating in the territorial jurisdiction of Pakistan as members of the IBCC forum.

• “allied organizations” means the authorized organizations operating in Pakistan dealing with education matters from secondary to higher secondary levels in both public and private sectors having membership of IBCC;
• “attestation” means attestation of a certificate or diploma or other valid instrument made by IBCC after having been issued by the member examining body or body authorized by the Government;
• “BISE” means boards of intermediate and secondary education;
• “Board of Governors” or “BoG” means Board of Governors of IBCC;
• “Commission” or “IBCC” means Inter Boards Coordination Commission constituted under this Act;
• “director” means director of IBCC;
• “director general” means director general of IBCC;
• “division concerned” means the division to which business of the IBCC stands allocated;
• “equivalence” means equivalence of foreign and local qualifications decided and authenticated by IBCC;
• “executive director” or “ED” means the executive director of IBCC, to serve as full time administrative head of IBCC;
• “forum” means the forum of IBCC comprising all its member boards, bodies or organizations, as the case may be;
• “member” means the member of the BoG or committee or sub-committees or forum of IBCC;
• “national coordinator” means the chairperson of any BISEs entrusted with powers as such to convene and preside over the meeting of the IBCC forum;
• “prescribed” means prescribed by rules or regulations made under this Act;
• “regulations” means regulations made under this Act;
• “rules” means rules made under this Act; and

“secretariat” means a full-time office of IBCC established for its secretariat services under this Act.

(1)     The existing Inter Boards Committee of Chairmen is hereby re-constituted and re-structured as the Inter Boards Coordination Commission to act and deal with the issues relating to the standardization of examination, assessment, evaluation and allied matters connected there to at secondary and higher secondary school levels through coordination along with recognition of local and foreign qualifications.

(2)      The IBCC shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and a common seal with powers to hold, purchase, sell or lease property both movable and immovable and may sue and be sued by its said name.

(3)      The IBCC shall perform the following function, namely: –

• shall be a forum for the chairmen or chairpersons or chief executives of member examination boards and other allied member organizations to exchange information, and make recommendations to devise policy for unified implementation at the country level on matters relating to the development and promotion of the academic evaluation, examination, and assessment;
• authenticate equivalence, attestation and verification of certificates up to higher secondary levels and equivalent having been issued from local or foreign authorized institutions or examining bodies and shall assess deficient subjects, papers and qualifications through evaluation for issuance of equivalency and measurement thereof, as the case may be, up to higher secondary level including tests and assessments for admissions, scholarships etc.;
• promote curricular and co-curricular activities among member boards or organizations in viable ways and means;
• transform the examination system in the country by introducing modern assessment and examination techniques and assessment of boards and taking steps as appropriate for the improvement of examination or assessment among the member boards;
• taking measures for capacity building of the teachers, paper setters, assessors, and examination staff for improvement of examination and assessment among the member boards;
• regulate foreign examination boards operating in the country;
• develop and promote national and international linkages with educational and examining bodies with respect to knowledge sharing, educational qualifications, personnel exchange, testing, assessment, and equivalence matters;
• shall be a forum at the national level to lay down principles of policy for professional capacity building through special studies or research to bring uniformity in examination and assessment at secondary and higher secondary levels throughout the country by adopting ways and means of firm coordination; and
• perform such other functions, as may be incidental or conducive to the attainment of the above functions or objectives or needed to be performed in the public interest or referred by the Federal Government.

(4)      Head office of IBCC shall be in Islamabad and it may establish its regional offices at such places in Pakistan and abroad as it may determine from time to time in accordance with the need in the public interest and as per set procedure to be defined and framed through relevant bodies.

(5)      Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force or any contract or agreement of service, all the employees of Inter Boards Committee of Chairmen existing immediately before the commencement of this Act shall stand transferred to the Inter Boards Coordination Commission from the date of commencement of this Act.

(6)      The legitimate monetary benefits of employees of IBCC transferred under sub-section (5) shall not be less favorable as admissible to them prior to commencement of this Act and to the member BISE of IBCC forum from Provincial or Federal Government.

(7)      Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, the IBCC shall have academic, financial, and administrative autonomy to proceed further and implement the policy of the government through the division concerned in a broader perspective through coordination with members BISEs and organizations.

(1)        The forum shall comprise the following members, namely:-

• national coordinator;
• executive director;
• Chairpersons of the BISEs;
• Chairpersons of the boards of technical education;
• Chairpersons of the textbook boards;
• heads of curriculum bureaus in Pakistan and administrative units thereof, national book foundation (NBF) and national curriculum council (NCC);
• representatives of authorized universities, institutions, and organizations of Federal or Provincial Governments nominated by them involved in the conduct of examinations and assessments at secondary and higher secondary levels; and
• any officer of the division concerned, not below the rank of deputy secretary.

(2)        The director general shall be the secretary of the IBCC forum.

• The national coordinator shall, by notification in the official Gazette, be appointed by the division concerned on a rotation basis of respective province or group or board from amongst the chairpersons of BISEs having membership of IBCC forum for a period of one year to be nominated by the respective government or IBCC forum.
• Sequence of rotation shall be determined in alphabetical order of the name of province or group or board decided by IBCC forum.
• The national coordinator shall preside over the meetings of the IBCC forum.

• The meetings of the IBCC forum shall be held periodically in the prescribed manner.
• The meetings of the IBCC forum may be called by the executive director of IBCC in consultation with the national coordinator.
• Quorum for meetings of the IBCC forum shall be one-third of the total members and any fraction may be counted as one.
• In an emergency, the executive director of IBCC may call a meeting of IBCC forum or any committee in consultation with the national coordinator.
• In absence of the national coordinator IBCC forum, the executive director shall decide about the convener-ship of IBCC forum under intimation to the national coordinator IBCC forum and the division concerned.

• The IBCC shall consist of the executive director, director general, directors, and such other officers and staff as may be needed and prescribed from time to time to run the mandated activities of the IBCC.
• The IBCC shall appoint such officers and staff on such terms and conditions and in such manner as may be prescribed.
• The serving officers and staff of Inter Boards Committee of Chairmen, existing as on the day of commencement of this Act, shall stand continued, protected, and regularized under this Act in the Inter Boards Coordination Commission on their occupying positions.

The executive director shall be appointed by the division concerned on set criteria or the terms and conditions as may be prescribed:

• Provided that the existing incumbent chief executive of Inter Boards Committee of Chairmen shall be the first executive director of newly re-constituted IBCC for a term of three years on  his terms and  conditions  existing before commencement of this Act or appointment by transfer whichever deems appropriate to the concerned Minister In-charge.

The executive director shall hold office for a term of three years and shall be eligible for re-appointment for a second term not exceeding three years:

• Provided that notwithstanding the expiry of the terms of his office, he shall continue to hold office until his/her successor is appointed and enters upon his office.
• If at any time the office of executive director is vacant, or he/she is unable to perform his/her functions, temporarily or otherwise by reason of leave, illness, or other cause for a period not exceeding one year, the concerned division shall make such arrangements for carrying on the duties of executive director as it may think fit.
• The executive director shall be the chief executive officer of the IBCC who shall ensure the observance of provisions of this Act and the rules, regulations, and policy made there under.
• If an emergency arises out of the administrative business of BoG which, in the opinion of the executive director, requires that immediate action should be taken, the Executive Director may take such action as he deems necessary and shall report the action taken to the concerned division and to the BoG at its next meeting for approval.
• The Executive Director shall exercise such other powers as may be prescribed.

The IBCC shall operate accounts with any scheduled or Government owned bank to deposit its all kinds of receipts earned from the resources of IBCC to be maintained in accordance with the prescribed procedure and format. The annual budget from earned resources of IBCC shall be passed or appropriated or re-appropriated from the finance and planning committee to be constituted by the BoG of IBCC. The financial provisions and discipline of IBCC shall be supervised by the finance and planning committee, which shall seek grant in-aid and other allocations from the Government through the division concerned as per the prescribed procedure.

• The accounts of IBCC shall be audited through the Auditor General of Pakistan in accordance with the applicable prescribed procedure, for which, all statements of expenditure, relevant registers and records shall be maintained in such form and manners as prescribed or may be prescribed.
• The IBCC shall, at the time of the audit, produce all accounts, registers, documents, and other papers, which may be required by the auditors to assist in the scrutiny of accounts:

Provided that, if the division concerned or BoG certifies that a particular document is secret, the auditor shall accept in lieu of such documents statement in respect thereof, duly certified by the authorized officer of the department:

Provided further that if such a document is confidential, the auditor shall be responsible for preventing disclosure of its contents.

• The IBCC may create a provident fund for the benefit of its existing employees, in accordance with the provisions of the Provident Funds Act, 1925 (XIX of 1926).
• The salary or their remunerations and pension of the new incumbent employees of IBCC shall be determined by the BoG on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed.