Strengthening Accountability Institutions through Transparency
Strengthening accountability in Pakistan is ultimately a political choice, not a technical exercise. For decades, corruption has acted as a structural tax on Pakistan’s economy, stifling growth, weakening public trust, and hollowing out confidence in the state. The current reform drive, from the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) enforcement actions to the Auditor General’s accounting overhaul and the recent transparent privatization of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), shows that the state has finally begun to move from slogans to systems. The question now is whether these initiatives will be sustained, insulated from political cycles, and deepened into a genuinely rules-based governance model.
At the centre of Pakistan’s accountability architecture, NAB remains the apex anti-corruption body under the National Accountability Ordinance of 1999. Over time, its mandate has been reinforced by legislative reforms, coordination with the Federal Investigation Agency, provincial Anti-Corruption Establishments, and the National Coordination Committee on Institutional Accountability. This interlocking web matters because corruption in Pakistan is not confined to a single tier of government; it is systemic, spanning procurement, land administration, and public service delivery.
When NAB revises internal guidelines for complaint handling, case selection, and plea bargains, and when it resolves the vast majority of complaints filed in a given year, it is not only enforcing laws; it is also signalling that abuse of public office will be contested rather than tolerated
The recent performance of NAB Lahore illustrates why enforcement, done transparently, can rebuild confidence. In 2025, NAB Lahore reportedly received over 6,000 complaints and resolved 98 percent of them, addressing the grievances of roughly 21,000 affectees. In December, NAB Chairman Lt Gen (R) Nazir Ahmed supervised the distribution of Rs 186.188 million recovered via plea bargain to 136 verified victims of the Suzuki Sialkot Motors fraud case at a public ceremony in Lahore. This kind of victim-centred restitution is essential. It demonstrates that anti-corruption is not just about headline arrests; it is about making citizens whole, returning looted assets to the public and private victims, and showing that white-collar crime carries real consequences.
Yet enforcement alone does not cure corruption; it must be coupled with greater transparency and fewer opportunities for abuse. Pakistan’s Right to Information (RTI) laws at the federal and provincial levels have opened a channel for citizens, media, and civil society to scrutinize official records and decisions. When properly implemented, RTI converts secrecy from a default into an exception, creating a steady pressure for better record-keeping and more defensible decisions. The challenge is implementation: delays, bureaucratic resistance, and narrow interpretations of exemptions can blunt the impact of these laws.
But the legal architecture is now in place, and courts, information commissions, and citizens increasingly have tools to contest opacity
Perhaps the most consequential, though less visible, reform is occurring in public financial management. In late 2025, the Auditor General of Pakistan initiated a transition from the long-standing cash-based New Accounting Model toward accrual-based standards aligned with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), with technical support from the World Bank. Moving to accrual accounting is not an accounting fad; it is a governance shift. It forces the state to recognize its full assets and liabilities, including pensions, contingent liabilities, and the long-term costs of policy decisions. For investors, multilateral partners, and citizens alike, more accurate and comprehensive financial statements mean greater credibility and less room for creative bookkeeping. If implemented with genuine independence and professional standards in the Auditor General’s office, this reform can become one of the most powerful guardrails against fiscal mismanagement.
Digital governance is another emerging pillar of integrity. The government’s recent emphasis on e-procurement platforms, customs automation, and public service portals is not just about efficiency; it is about narrowing the space for discretion and rent-seeking. Electronic tendering, standardized documentation, and auditable decision trails make it harder for officials to manipulate bids or “lose” files. Similarly, customs automation reduces opportunities for under-invoicing and informal payments at ports and border posts.
These systems are not foolproof; they can be gamed or circumvented, but they raise the cost of corruption and lower the barriers to detection
The privatization of PIA on 23 December 2025 has become a flagship test of transparency in high-stakes transactions. In a live-televised auction, three pre-qualified consortia, led by Arif Habib, Lucky Cement, and Airblue, submitted sealed bids, with Airblue exiting after a bid below the Rs 100 billion reference price. An open bidding round between the top two bidders followed, and the Arif Habib-led consortium ultimately secured a 75 percent stake with a Rs 135 billion offer, surpassing the reserve price. Broadcasting the auction, publishing reference prices, and clarifying the treatment of PIA’s legacy debt directly addressed long-standing suspicions that privatizations serve insiders rather than the public interest. If similar standards are applied to future state-owned enterprise divestments, Pakistan can begin to change the narrative around privatization from backroom deals to market-based restructuring.
External benchmarks suggest that these efforts are beginning to have an impact. Transparency International Pakistan’s National Corruption Perception Survey 2025 found that around 66 percent of respondents did not encounter a situation in the past year where they felt compelled to pay a bribe for public services, a notable improvement in day-to-day interactions with the state. The same survey, as well as commentary around it, links reduced petty bribery partly to macroeconomic stabilization and improved financial discipline under IMF-supported reforms and Pakistan’s earlier exit from the FATF grey list, even as it warns that structural corruption and perceptions of high-level impunity remain serious concerns.
This dual message is important: progress on routine service delivery is real, but citizens will not be satisfied until they see consistent accountability for grand corruption as well
Pakistan’s reform trajectory is also embedded in international commitments. Implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy, adherence to the UN Convention against Corruption, and compliance with FATF standards on financial transparency and anti–money laundering have all shaped domestic legislation and enforcement practices. These frameworks act as external anchors, raising the political cost of backsliding and aligning Pakistan’s institutions with globally recognized norms of transparency, beneficial ownership disclosure, and financial integrity.
Still, it would be naïve to declare victory. Surveys and media analyses continue to highlight serious concerns in policing, public procurement, and the judiciary, where perceptions of corruption remain high, and reforms have been uneven. Anti-corruption institutions themselves must guard against politicization, selective accountability, and media-driven trials that erode due process. Genuine independence for NAB, the Auditor General, and other oversight bodies requires predictable funding, merit-based appointments, tenure security, and statutory protections from arbitrary interference, not merely statements of intent.
The path ahead is clear but demanding. Pakistan has begun to weave together enforcement, transparency, and institutional independence into a more coherent accountability framework. The live-televised PIA privatization, the move to IPSAS-aligned accrual accounting, digital procurement and revenue systems, RTI implementation, and NAB’s victim-focused recoveries are not isolated wins; they are building blocks of a more rules-based state. To convert these into lasting change, political leaders will need to resist the temptation to instrumentalize accountability, civil society and media must continue to push for openness, and international partners must calibrate support around sustained institutional reforms rather than short-term headline measures. If that happens, Pakistan’s current anti-corruption agenda could mark not just a moment of improvement, but the foundation of a more credible, transparent, and economically resilient republic.
