Corruption in Pakistan has long been an entrenched challenge, but the National Corruption Perception Survey (NCPS) 2025 offers a sharper, more unsettling portrait of how citizens view the integrity of the state and its institutions today.
Conducted across 20 districts with 4,000 respondents, the survey provides one of the most comprehensive snapshots of public sentiment in years. The results, however, reflect an alarming erosion of public confidence, one that cuts across sectors, provinces, income groups, gender lines and service delivery channels. More critically, these findings mirror the widening gap between formal reform efforts and the lived experiences of citizens who navigate state systems every day.
At the forefront of public concern is the police sector, which continues to be perceived as the most corrupt institution in the country, identified by 24 per cent of respondents; Punjab registers the highest perception at 34 per cent. This entrenched perception is not new, but its persistence signals the failure of successive reform attempts and the urgent need for structural, command-level interventions.
Tendering and procurement follow as the second most corrupt area at 16 per cent, underscoring continued vulnerabilities in public financial management and government contracting. The judiciary, perceived by 14 per cent as the third most corrupt sector, reflects growing frustration with delays, inefficiencies and questionable decision-making that collectively weaken the justice system’s credibility.
There is, however, one surprising shift. Despite the grim findings, a majority of citizens, 66 per cent nationwide, reported that in the past 12 months they did not have to pay a bribe to access public services. This sentiment contrasts sharply with prior years and may reflect improvements in digital service delivery, reduced in-person interactions with officials or, conversely, reduced access to services altogether. Sindh, however, remains a troubling outlier, with 46 per cent of respondents reporting bribery encounters compared to only 20 per cent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Such disparities reflect the uneven governance performance and administrative disparities among provinces.
Economic anxiety also runs deep throughout the survey results. A significant 57 per cent of respondents reported that their purchasing power declined over the past year. With inflationary pressures, rising utility costs and stagnant wages, economic hardship continues to erode the financial stability of ordinary families. The fact that only 18 per cent fully agree that the IMF agreement and FATF exit stabilised the economy speaks to widespread scepticism about macroeconomic gains translating into household-level relief. Public confidence in economic governance is therefore fragile and susceptible to further deterioration.
Citizens also express deep concern about the underlying causes of corruption. The absence of accountability (15 per cent), lack of transparency and limited access to information (15 per cent), and delays in corruption case decisions (14 per cent) are seen as primary drivers of the problem. These indicators reveal a public that is not only aware of governance failures but increasingly unconvinced that anti-corruption bodies or judicial institutions are capable of enforcing meaningful change. The perception that provincial governments are more corrupt than local governments, held by 59 per cent nationally, and by an overwhelming 70 per cent in Punjab, reinforces this view and highlights where reform efforts must be concentrated.
Ironically, even the very institutions responsible for combating corruption are themselves under scrutiny. A striking 78 per cent of respondents nationwide believe that anti-corruption bodies such as NAB and FIA require their own accountability mechanisms. The reasons citizens provide are damning: lack of transparency in investigations (35 per cent), absence of independent oversight (33 per cent), and political victimisation through misuse of authority (32 per cent). This is perhaps the clearest indication that Pakistan’s anti-corruption landscape is perceived as selective, politicised and lacking institutional credibility. Any reform agenda must therefore begin with restoring the legitimacy of accountability bodies.
Healthcare, one of the most basic public services, emerges as a sector in crisis. A staggering 67 per cent of respondents say corruption in healthcare has a “very high impact” on their lives, a sentiment especially strong in Sindh (69 per cent) and KP (68 per cent). Hospitals are the perceived epicentre of corruption (38 per cent nationally), followed by unethical practices involving doctors (23 per cent) and pharmaceutical companies (21 per cent). The survey shows clear public demand for stricter policies on pharmaceutical commissions (supported by 23 per cent of respondents), bans on private practice for public doctors (20 per cent), and stronger regulatory enforcement. The message is unmistakable: corruption in healthcare is a matter of life and death.
Political financing also comes under sharp criticism. With 83 per cent of respondents supporting either a complete ban or strict regulation on business funding to political parties, the public’s intolerance for opaque political financing is unmistakable. In a political culture where patronage networks thrive, this finding marks a significant shift toward cleaner electoral financing norms. Fifty-five per cent also support banning political leaders’ images in government advertisements, reflecting a growing demand for depersonalised, citizen-centric governance.
One of the most troubling findings in the NCPS 2025 is the lack of awareness of corruption-reporting mechanisms: 70 per cent of respondents nationwide do not know how or where to report corruption. Even among those who are aware, only 43 per cent have ever filed a report. This massive gap highlights the failure to create accessible, trusted, and safe reporting channels. Without public-facing whistleblower protections, digital reporting platforms, and independent oversight mechanisms, citizens will continue to remain reluctant to expose wrongdoing. Encouragingly, 42 per cent report they would feel safe if strong whistleblower protection laws were enacted, making it clear that Pakistan urgently needs such legislation.
What emerges from the 2025 survey is not merely a catalogue of corruption but a people-centred narrative of distrust, frustration and unrealised aspirations. The public is calling for targeted reforms. Enhancing accountability (26 per cent), limiting discretionary powers (23 per cent), digitising public services, strengthening RTI laws and increasing public awareness remain citizens’ top priorities for immediate action. These are not abstract policy preferences; they represent a blueprint for rebuilding public confidence.
As Pakistan prepares for another cycle of governance reforms and institutional restructuring, policymakers must treat the NCPS 2025 as a referendum on the state of public trust. Corruption is an impediment to service delivery and a direct assault on the state's legitimacy. The survey results remind us that corruption is a lived experience that affects access to justice, healthcare, income stability and democratic representation.
The question now is whether the country’s political and institutional leadership will treat these findings as a wake-up call. Without bold, transparent and systemic reforms, Pakistan risks slipping further into a cycle of distrust where public institutions no longer command credibility. The NCPS 2025 offers the diagnosis. The prescription, however, depends entirely on the will of those in power.
The writer is a public policy expert and leads the Country Partner Institute of the World Economic Forum in Pakistan. He tweets/posts @amirjahangir and can be reached at: [email protected]
