Pakistan’s Local Governments: Struggling For Power, Funds, And Democratic Reform |
Local governments in Pakistan stand at the intersection of promise and neglect. They are constitutionally acknowledged yet institutionally fragile, financially starved yet burdened with expectations, and politically sidelined despite being the closest tier of governance to the people.
A recent report, “Status of Local Governments in Pakistan”, published by AwazCDS-Pakistan (a civil society organisation), provides a sobering account of how Pakistan’s local democracy has been systematically weakened. This essay attempts to summarise the findings of the report, which provides deeper insight into the dispositions explaining why grassroots governance remains in limbo and why reform is essential.
The Constitution of Pakistan, 1973, recognises local governments only in passing. Article 32 encourages their promotion, Article 37 calls for decentralisation, and Article 140A obliges provinces to establish systems of local government. Yet these provisions remain skeletal. Unlike the detailed chapters on federal and provincial structures, local governments are left without a dedicated constitutional framework.
Without explicit constitutional protection, they remain vulnerable to dissolution at the whim of provincial assemblies. The Eighteenth Amendment, celebrated for devolving powers from the federation to provinces, conspicuously ignored the third tier. Forty-four subjects from the concurrent list were transferred to provinces, but none were assigned to local governments. Provincial Finance Commissions, which could have anchored fiscal devolution, were left without constitutional entrenchment.
The contrast with India is striking. The Indian Constitution, through the 73rd and 74th Amendments, provides detailed chapters on Panchayati Raj institutions and municipal bodies. These amendments not only define the structure and functions of local governments but also guarantee their continuity through constitutional protection. Pakistan’s silence, by comparison, leaves its local governments perpetually exposed.