Government Proposes Merging Privatization Commission with PPP Authorit

Government Proposes Merging Privatization Commission with PPP Authority

A bill in the National Assembly would combine Pakistan's Privatisation Commission and Public-Private Partnership Authority into a single Privatization and Public-Private Partnership Commission.

NationPulse Desk

Oct 26, 2026 · 9:04 AM 2 min read

Key takeaways

A bill in the National Assembly seeks to merge the Privatisation Commission and P3A into the Privatization and Public-Private Partnership Commission.

Muhammad Ali, current Privatisation Commission chairman, would lead the new commission, whose board will have a private-sector majority and at least two women.

The commission would administer four non-lapsable funds, including a public contribution fund to meet PPP-related government obligations.

PPP agreements would become public documents, and the government would have immunity from private-party claims for unspecified risks.

P3A staff and consultants could be retained for up to six months under existing terms if the bill becomes law.

The government has introduced a bill in the National Assembly to merge Pakistan's Privatisation Commission with the Public-Private Partnership Authority (P3A) into one entity that will handle the disposal of state assets and private-sector projects involving public services and infrastructure.

The legislation would establish the Privatization and Public-Private Partnership Commission (PPPPC), amend the Privatization Commission Ordinance 2000 and repeal the Public-Private Partnership Authority Act 2017, effectively dissolving the current P3A.

For citizens, the changes may influence how infrastructure and service projects are approved, financed and overseen. The new commission is expected to advise on PPP projects, help structure transactions and monitor their implementation.

Officials say consolidating functions under a single institution should cut duplication and speed up transactions. Muhammad Ali, chairman of the existing Privatisation Commission, would head the proposed body, whose board would be dominated by private-sector members and include at least two women. Board members would serve fixed terms with clear grounds for removal.

Public funds could meet government obligations

The commission would manage four funds - the privatisation fund, public contribution fund, viability gap fund and PPP project development fund. The draft allows these funds to draw money from the federal budget, international lenders, investment income and other sources, and they would be non-lapsable, meaning unspent balances would not automatically expire at year-end.

The public contribution fund could be tapped to meet government obligations linked to PPP projects, such as land acquisition, site hand-over and rights-of-way provision.

The bill also outlines a federal pipeline for PPP projects, an approval process, a risk-management unit and committees to supervise transactions. Government agencies would be required to submit full details of existing, planned and proposed projects within 15 days, even if not formally labelled as PPPs.

Contracts to be made public; immunity provisions included

Under the proposal, PPP agreements would become public documents, and interested parties could request copies subject to applicable laws. The government, commission and relevant agencies would not be liable for private-party claims over risks not specified in an agreement.

Existing contracts signed by the P3A would transfer to the new commission without disadvantaging private parties, the bill states.

The draft also grants legal and investigative immunity to current and former chairmen, secretaries, board members, officials and consultants for actions or omissions made in good faith and in a personal capacity, and commits public funds to defend cases brought against them under these provisions.

If passed, staff and consultants of the P3A would be retained by the new commission for up to six months or until their contracts end, whichever occurs first, on terms no less favourable than their current conditions.

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