Govt shares action plan with IMF ahead of review mission's Pakistan visit

• Process for appointing the NAB chairperson will be reviewed.
• Direct appointment of SECP chairperson codified in amendment bill.
• Govt to publish governance, transparency report approved by SECP

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has shared an action plan with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to review the process for appointing the chairperson of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), introduce the publication of asset declarations for high-level federal civil servants in 2026, and implement risk-based verification of these declarations, The News reported on Sunday.

The process for appointing the NAB chairperson will be reviewed and a summary will be placed before the federal cabinet for consideration.

The IMF review mission is scheduled to visit Pakistan from February 25 to March 11, 2026, to assess performance under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and $1.4 billion Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

A key area of scrutiny during the upcoming mission will be Pakistan's response to the Governance and Corruption Diagnostics (GCD) Assessment Report.

Pakistan has agreed with the IMF to review and enhance the legal framework governing the appointment of heads for key oversight bodies, such as the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP), Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and NAB, to promote merit-based selection processes.

The direct appointment process for the SECP chairperson has been codified in the draft SECP Amendment Bill, which includes a selection committee responsible for identifying and recommending potential candidates.

The federal government will issue rules to codify these processes. By June 27, the government plans to notify the SECP of the rules that codify the entire appointment process for the chairperson, commissioners and Policy Board members and ensure the timely initiation of these processes — at least three months before a tenure ends.

It will also publish an annual governance and transparency report approved by the SECP Policy Board, aiming for improved oversight and reduced leadership gaps, leading to enhanced regulatory stability, consistent decision-making and greater investor confidence.

An amendment to the Competition Act 2010 will be required to establish a separate and independent process for appointing the CCP chairperson.

The plan includes notifying CCP rules that codify the full appointment process for the chairperson and members, ensuring the timely initiation of appointments — minimum three months before tenure completion — and publishing an annual governance and transparency report approved by the commission.

These measures, aimed at enhancing the CCP's effectiveness in ensuring competitive markets (including for commodities), are targeted for completion by June 27.

The appointment process for the NAB chairperson will be reviewed upon the conclusion of the formal review process, with action to be taken if required. The goal is to increase the public credibility of NAB as an anti-corruption agency by June 27.

Currently, senior civil servants are required to submit asset declarations under existing legal and administrative frameworks. The FBR maintains tax and wealth statement data that can support verification and cross-checking, while NAB has experience in financial investigations and handling cases of unexplained wealth.

The Establishment Division is the key agency managing personnel records and disciplinary frameworks for federal civil servants.

Although the digitalisation of tax records and third-party data has improved the analytical capacity for asset verification, declarations are not publicly accessible and verification remains largely ad hoc and complaint-driven, limiting its deterrent effect.

To address this, the Establishment Division, in collaboration with the FBR, will deploy a computerised system to generate risk-based cases for verification, to be conducted by the FBR and other relevant agencies starting June 27.

Using this risk-factor model, cases that raise red flags will be reviewed by a committee comprising the Establishment Division, FBR, FIA and NAB. This committee will decide whether a matter should be formally investigated and, if so, by which agency.

The data and analysis will also be used to identify systemic corruption and integrity issues, informing the design of measures to mitigate corruption vulnerabilities.

Furthermore, a scheme will be developed to sequentially make asset declarations available on the Establishment Division website, while observing necessary confidentiality safeguards.

The Civil Servants Act was recently amended — in 2025 — to provide for the public declaration of assets by civil servants in basic pay scales 17 to 22. The Civil Service (Conduct) Rules will now be revised to establish the complete legal framework by June 2026.

An Accountability Facilitation Cell has been established and will hold monthly meetings. Its tasks include developing the risk factor model, defining red flags and outlining the coordination mechanism between the Establishment Division, agencies concerned and FBR. With the FBR's involvement, the Establishment Division will also deploy a digital asset declaration system across all ministries by 2027.