Govt agrees to publish asset declarations of top officials in next year

The government has agreed to publish asset declarations of high-level public officials in 2026 and introduce risk-based verification, following sharp criticism from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over weaknesses in Pakistan’s anti-corruption framework, as reported by Dawn. 

The commitments appear in the IMF’s Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment (GCDA), released by the Ministry of Finance as part of a structural benchmark of the ongoing $7 billion programme. The report states that both sides have agreed to strengthen accountability and integrity among high-level federal civil servants by initiating the publication of asset declarations in 2026 and introducing risk-based verification of asset declarations.

For the longer term, the IMF and the government have discussed establishing a central authority to collect, digitise and publish asset declarations of senior public officials, with powers to verify declarations. Whether such a body is created will depend on developments beyond the life of the current IMF programme.

The IMF also called for reforms to enhance the independence and effectiveness of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), saying the current appointment process is a “political compromise”. It recommended strengthening appointment procedures for the NAB chairman, expanding investigative capacity, and establishing strong internal accountability mechanisms.

The GCDA flagged significant gaps in disciplinary and investigative processes across state institutions. It noted that corruption-related disciplinary actions, especially for senior revenue officials, remain limited, with penalties ranging from delayed promotions to dismissal, but rarely progressing to criminal prosecution. The Federal Board of Revenue was unable to provide data on recent criminal cases, and the report observed that prosecutions “occur only occasionally”.

At the provincial level, the IMF found that anti-corruption bodies require approval from top provincial authorities before initiating probes, a requirement it said could hinder investigations in a system marked by patronage politics. Weak access to key databases — including identity records, tax filings, asset declarations and bank information — further restricts investigative capacity.

On asset disclosures, the assessment identified fragmented rules across government servants, public officeholders, the judiciary and armed forces, with no unified system and limited verification. Declarations for the judiciary are submitted only to the chief justice, while declarations of NAB officials, including the bureau’s head, are not public due to privacy restrictions.

The report emphasised the need for a robust, independent and credible verification system and said lifestyle monitoring could play a useful role in detecting illicit enrichment.

It also highlighted concerns about qualification requirements for senior NAB positions, which restrict the pool of candidates by limiting eligibility largely to retired judges, senior civil servants and military officers.

The IMF recommended a more transparent, competitive and multi-stakeholder selection process for the NAB chairman, involving representatives from the administration, opposition, judiciary, civil society and academia. It further advised the creation of an autonomous oversight body to audit internal controls and reduce politicisation risks within NAB.

According to the assessment, these reforms will be central to improving transparency, governance and enforcement outcomes in Pakistan’s public sector.