ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s provincial governments in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have saved billions of rupees and unlocked significant new resources for development under a landmark British-backed governance program that concluded this year, the British High Commission said on Wednesday.
The UK’s Sub-National Governance Program, which ran from 2019 to 2025, worked with provincial authorities to improve planning, budgeting and revenue mobilization.
According to the High Commission, the program unlocked over £1.9 billion ($2.41 billion) in public finance, allowing savings to be reinvested into other public services.
In Punjab, a comprehensive pensions reform plan was introduced, shifting to a contributory scheme with both employer and employee payments, expected to save the government of Punjab Rs 2.7 trillion. ($9.72 billion) over the next 30 years. In KP, the program supported an overhaul of waste management systems, introducing sustainable door-to-door collection now being scaled up across the province.
“This program shows what is possible when strong partnerships come together to support long-term reform, changing people’s lives,” British High Commission Development Director Sam Waldock said.
“We’ve strengthened institutions, improved service delivery, and helped Pakistan unlock more of its resources to finance its own development. That has led to direct improvements to the day to day lives of millions — from helping people to access essential cash assistance, to creating waste management systems which makes their surroundings cleaner and more hygienic.”
The statement said the reforms also strengthened social protection systems in Punjab by collecting social and economic data for 35 million residents, enabling the government to better target urgent cash assistance and food subsidies.
The program helped design and roll out initiatives such as Ba-Himmat Buzurg, which offers financial assistance to elderly people with no source of income, and the Himmat Card, which provides financial support for people with disabilities.
The UK’s work on governance reform in Pakistan will now continue under the new National Governance Program, in collaboration with the UN Development Program, with a focus on sustained institutional reform and improved public financial management, including further provincial pension reforms.
The UK is one of Pakistan’s largest bilateral development partners, with cooperation spanning education, health, climate resilience, governance reform and trade. The UK is also home to one of the largest Pakistani diasporas, estimated at over 1.6 million people, who contribute significantly to remittances, business and cultural links.
In 2024, total trade in goods and services between the UK and Pakistan was £4.7 billion ($5.97 billion), up 7.3 percent from the previous year.
