PAKISTAN’S latest debate over administrative restructuring offers an opportunity far more consequential than simply creating new provinces or redrawing boundaries. The real opportunity is to rethink how the state is organized, how authority is distributed and, above all, how government can be brought closer to the people. Political parties, policymakers and experts are increasingly calling for new administrative units, stronger local governments and greater fiscal devolution. The debate is rightly moving beyond geography towards governance, service delivery and institutional reform.

This is precisely where Pakistan should focus. The country does not necessarily need another layer of distant government; it needs more effective, empowered and democratically accountable centres of government closer to where people live. One practical way forward is to transform suitable existing administrative divisions into Autonomous Administrative Regions/Units (AARs). Pakistan already has administrative divisions that can provide a natural starting point. Rather than creating entirely new bureaucracies, selected divisions could progressively be transformed into AARs according to population, geography, economic linkages, administrative convenience and local aspirations.

The objective would not be to reproduce provincial governments on a smaller scale. An AAR would instead be a democratically governed regional development and service-delivery authority, with clearly defined responsibilities, its own budget, professional administration and elected leadership. The principle should be simple: the government closest to the citizen should have the authority and resources to solve the problems closest to the citizen. An AAR could become the missing link between provincial policy and local service delivery, allowing large provinces to remain intact while bringing political, administrative and economic decision-making substantially closer to their populations.

Most importantly, AARs must not become another bureaucratic experiment. They must be elected institutions. Each AAR should have a directly elected Regional Council for a fixed five-year term. The Council could elect a Regional Chief Executive, or the Chief Executive could be directly elected by the people. The precise model can be debated; the principle should not be. The region must derive its authority from the people. The Regional Council would approve the regional development plan, oversee regional departments, scrutinize expenditure and hold the Regional Executive accountable.

Citizens should know exactly who is responsible for regional infrastructure, secondary healthcare, technical........

© Pakistan Observer