ISLAMABAD: A serving Pakistani general was on Monday appointed to head Pakistan’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), which regulates government databases and statistically manages the identity data of all citizens of Pakistan.

NADRA is responsible for issuing computerized national identity cards (CNICs) to Pakistani citizens and securing their national identities from being stolen or misused. In the past, the body has been largely headed by civilians as well as retired government, police and military officials.

“The federal government has been pleased to appoint Lt. Gen. Muhammad Munir Afsar as Chairman NADRA,” a ministry of interior notification said.

Afsar was serving as the army Inspector General Communication and Information Technology and Commander of Pakistan Army Cyber Command before being appointed NADRA chief. He has substantial experience in IT-related technical development and management within the army as well as during his service with Pakistan’s mission to the United Nations.

Afsar holds an MPhil in Public Policy and National Security Management, and is a specialist in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), with an MS in GIS and remote sensing. He is currently pursuing a PhD in remote sensing from NUST Islamabad, focusing on the detection of plant diseases through the integration of remote sensing and artificial intelligence. 

In the past he has also served as a Military Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Officer at the UN.

As a major general, Afsar was the Director General of the DG Command, Control, Communication, Computers, and Intelligence (C41) Directorate, responsible for the overarching management of IT.