IMF wants govt to boost transparency of anti-graft body
• Says changes to NAB law for transparency in chief’s appointment should be tabled by 2027
• Govt commits to enhancing capacities of provincial anti-corruption bodies
ISLAMABAD: Under the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) enhanced focus on fighting corruption head-on, Pakistan has been required to increase the autonomy and transparency of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and report regularly on the outcomes to the Fund.
“To enhance the independence and transparency of the National Accountability Bureau, the authorities will submit amendments to the NAB Ordinance to parliament to enhance the appointment process for the NAB chairman and publish investigation and prosecution rules and annual enforcement statistics” no later than end of January 2027, the IMF stated in its recent staff report.
Before the 2027 amendments, an earlier structural benchmark has required the government to reach an agreement with the IMF on a methodology for a corruption risk assessment for an anti-corruption action plan to be led by NAB.
It will also publish corruption vulnerabilities in the top 10 identified departments based on an institutional-level risk assessment, including adopting a methodology approved by the Anti-Corruption and Anti-Money Laundering/Counter-Financing Terrorism (AML/CFT) Committee, chaired by the law ministry.
Strengthening the effectiveness of the anti-corruption institutions has become a greater focus for IMF following the publication of its governance and corruption diagnostic assessment (GCDA) last year. The government recently revised the Civil Servant (Conduct) Rules to ensure the online publication of asset declarations by senior federal civil servants by the end of December 2026.
In December last year, Pakistan published the Prime Minister’s Economic Governance Reform (EGR) Plan based on the key GCDA recommendations, which sets out 15 reform actions with key performance indicators, timelines, and monitoring modalities. The authorities have committed to further developing and publishing outcome-based indicators in consultation with key stakeholders to ensure transparency.
The authorities will also prepare progress reports on a six-month basis to track the implementation and publish them on the finance ministry website. It is currently in the consultation process.
Corruption mitigation plan
Tasked by the Anti-Corruption and AML/CFT Committee, NAB has been designated to lead the development of an action plan to mitigate corruption vulnerabilities in the top ten government departments identified with the highest corruption risks by the end of October 2026.
To guide the development of the plan, in consultation and agreement with the IMF staff by end-June 2026, the Anti-Corruption and AML/CFT Committee will develop and publish a methodology for assessing and prioritising agency-level corruption risks, and protocols for conducting the risk assessment, reporting and reviewing results of the analysis, and defining the plan to reduce corruption risks in identified agencies.
The government has also committed to enhancing the capacities of provincial anti-corruption establishments (PACEs) to conduct financial investigations in relation to corruption at the provincial level. In line with the AML Act and the National Fiscal Pact, the relevant federal notification process initiated by the Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) will be issued by the end of December 2026, designating the provincial bodies to investigate money laundering.
To support the online publication of asset declarations of high-level federal civil servants by December-end 2026, the Establishment Division will also revise the declaration form to specify restrictions on confidential personal information by May-end 2026, and in coordination with the FBR, will develop a framework for risk-based verifications by June 2027.
Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2026
