Pakistan Rethinking Governance in Pakistan

[Fatman17]

*EDITORIAL:* It has been quite something to watch a whisper become, in a matter of weeks, the state’s new “number one priority”. The trigger was the interior minister’s surprising admission at the Pakistan Economic Summit in late July that the present system had “collapsed”, and that new provinces and administrative reform were therefore urgently needed.

The political earthquake was immediate. For the PPP, already fuming over the AJK election, it was an insult added to injury. The president’s abrupt departure for London has since fed a good deal of speculation. Some believe that he went to press his allies in government to drop the idea altogether. Others have pointed out that his exit echoes another, years ago, when the PPP was being asked to make choices it considered political suicide. What can be said with certainty, however, is that an impasse has been reached.

*Read more:* www.dawn.com/news/2028297

 

[Fatman17]

Beyond speeches

Bold claims hide the reality of education spending.

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This year’s budgets offer an uneven answer. Punjab and Sindh are allocating fewer funds than last year, even before the inflation adjustment. Balochistan has increased its education allocation, but its share of the overall budget has fallen. The federation’s allocation shows an increase but education still receives less than 1pc of the total federal expenditure. Until budget statements show sustained increases in education’s share, allocations that retain their value against inflation and transparent spending on girls and the most excluded children, applause during budget speeches will remain louder than the commitment claimed.

PS:
Approximately 35% to 39% of school-age children aged 5 to 16 are out of school in Pakistan, totaling an estimated 25.1 to 26.2 million children according to UNICEF Pakistan. Pakistan currently has the second-highest number of out-of-school children in the world. [1]

Provincial Breakdown
The percentage of children out of school varies widely by region:

• • Balochistan: 69% (approx. 3.5 million children)
  • Sindh: 44% (approx. 7.4 million children)
  • Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 34% (approx. 4.5 million children)
  • Punjab: 27% (approx. 9.7 million children, the largest absolute number)
  • Islamabad Capital Territory: 15% (approx. 0.09 million children) [1]

Gender and Age Factors

• • Girls: Girls make up about 53% to 62% of all out-of-school children nationwide.
  • Dropouts: Dropout rates are highest at the higher secondary and primary transition levels, driven by poverty, lack of school infrastructure, and social norms. [1]

 

[Fatman17]

9 rights groups, including CPJ and RSF, urge PM to address 'deteriorating press freedom' in Pakistan

Say recent developments have "further eroded the ability of Pakistani journalists to report freely and safely".

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Nine press freedom and human rights organisations, including international bodies, have penned a letter to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, urging him to take “immediate action to address the country’s rapidly deteriorating press freedom environment”.

 

[Fatman17]

Political disconnect

Technical fixes are no panacea that will miraculously solve the country’s problems.

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THE disconnect between the government and public concerns could not be starker. While people worry about their economic situation the government is focused on altering the country’s provincial structure. According to the latest Ipsos poll, three in four people believe the country is headed in the wrong direction. The economy and especially inflation are their top concerns. A majority of respondents also said they do not view the economy as strong.

 

[Fatman17]

Extraction and delivery

In domains of extraction, there is an urgent need to reduce discretion and fragmentation of state authority, perhaps even with the use of automated structures in whatever form.

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AS the debate on changing provincial boundaries and decentralisation rages on, it is worth taking a step back to see what is at stake here. What are the main problems that require attention and which have made several people, including entrenched insiders, declare that the current system is ‘broken’?

The biggest issue being sidestepped by everyone involved (except opposition parties) remains constitutional rule and legitimacy of the state. The current discourse chooses to ignore this, considering it either taboo or a foregone conclusion. Bringing it up seems particularly futile in this discussion given how little it bears on those making decisions and increasingly with those tasked with interrogating these decisions.

 

[Fatman17]

Poverty remains one of the challenges most confronting - Pakistan Today

The economic survey of 2025-26 in Pakistan also underscores that the number of unemployed persons has increased from 4.5 million to 5.9 million.

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Pakistan’s Poverty Challenge

Poverty remains one of the challenges most confronting Pakistan. Poverty restricts human capabilities, reinforces inequality, weakens social mobility and constrains national development. It is a multidimensional issue and requires more than short-term relief measures.

According to the Economic Survey of Pakistan 2025-2026, the ratio of poverty is increasing rapidly. The poverty figure at the national level has increased from 21.9 percent to 28.9 percent in the current year. Provincial-level poverty estimates indicate that poverty in Punjab, despite its relatively strong economic position and resource base, increased from 16.5 percent to 23.3 percent, while in Sindh it plunged from 24.5 percent to 32.6 percent. In the same way, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the poverty rate increased from 28.7 percent to 35.3 percent, while in Balochistan, it rose from 41.8 percent to 47.0 percent.