The government has revealed plans to downsize its operations, announcing the abolition or relocation of 65 departments, including the Ministry of Defence and the Judiciary, as part of a strategy to reduce its size and improve efficiency. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, addressing the media, explained that this decision followed a comprehensive review of 10 ministries under the government’s rightsizing plan.
In the first phase, 40 entities will be abolished, with 28 of them either closed, privatized, or transferred to provincial governments. The finance minister emphasized that no ministry is exempt from the review process. The government aims to streamline operations and reduce redundancy, as many departments were found to be performing similar tasks. Aurangzeb clarified that the Ministry of Defence and the Judiciary will also be reviewed, but did not provide specific savings figures from the closure of these entities.
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Among the ministries under review, several departments are set to be closed, merged, or reduced. For example, the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Ministry of Safron will be merged, while 40 entities under various ministries, including Information Technology and National Health Services, will be closed. The government also plans to reduce the size of 26 entities and merge nine others under the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Commerce, and other departments.
The government has committed to abolishing 150,000 vacant posts and outsourcing non-core services such as gardening and cleaning. This rightsizing initiative, which aims to reduce government expenditure and improve efficiency, is expected to be completed by June 30, 2025. The finance minister emphasized the importance of implementing a single treasury account to provide better visibility of public funds, a move that has been partially implemented already.
