The Pakistan government is reportedly considering a proposal to redraw the country's map. According to a report by The Economist, Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir is pushing to break the country's four existing provinces into 12 to 15 smaller units to improve governance.

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Why Pakistan Is Considering Splitting 4 Provinces?

Pakistan has had four administrative provinces - Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan - since 1947. Over the decades, this arrangement has created significant demographic and administrative gaps:

Punjab: Home to roughly 128 million residents, representing slightly over half of the national population.

Balochistan: Covers the largest land area but has about 15 million people, or roughly 6 per cent of the population.

Munir argues that the current provinces are too large to be run efficiently, linking these directly to the nation's economic and governance struggles.

How The Proposed Plan Works

Under the proposed plan, the smaller administrative units would be governed by elected chiefs, provincial or district assemblies, or government nominees.

Restructuring the map would directly affect Punjab and Sindh, which serve as the primary strongholds for the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). The Economist described Munir as someone who has been "ruthless in consolidating power in his own hands".

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Government Response To New Provinces Plan

According to Pakistani reports, the proposal was reviewed by a high-level committee set up by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. However, public and political reactions remain divided.

Many residents suggest that empowering local governments would deliver better results than creating new provinces. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has been leading discussions on strengthening local governance frameworks.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi stated that creating new provinces requires a constitutional process and national consensus. While suggesting that Islamabad could be turned into a full province to improve governance, Naqvi emphasised that the decision to create new provinces should be left to the people.

"Let the people decide about new provinces. Let them say what they want," Naqvi said. However, the minister did not provide a timeline for the changes.

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