GUJRANWALA – Mian Amer Mahmood, has said that Large Provinces are becoming a major obstacle to Pakistan’s development. He shared these views while addressing students at Gift University during an APSUP awareness session titled “Pakistan 2030: Challenges, Opportunities, and New Pathways.”
He said that although Pakistan is now 79 years old, the country has still not achieved strong and efficient governance. He added that Pakistan has great potential, but it remains largely unused. Despite the fact that 65% of the population is young, only one percent of them are able to reach universities.
Mian Amer noted that Pakistan had only four provinces even before the 1973 Constitution, but these Large Provinces have created major governance challenges. Punjab alone makes up 52% of Pakistan’s population, making it bigger than all other federating units combined. He argued that such uneven provincial sizes limit progress in education, health, infrastructure, and justice.
He said a World Bank study on Pakistan’s future highlights several areas where the country must improve. He added that Balochistan covers half of Pakistan’s land area, yet law and order remains difficult to maintain. Apart from capital cities, Pakistan has not developed any major city to a strong standard.
He pointed out that Faisalabad, the country’s third-largest city, still lacks good hospitals, universities, and colleges. Similarly, Gujranwala, known as an industrial hub and part of the “Golden Triangle,” receives far fewer facilities than Lahore.
Mian Amer also highlighted administrative burdens, such as Punjab trying to manage 60,000 schools from Lahore. He said the government struggles with basic tasks, like counting schools, making efficient governance impossible in Large Provinces.
Comparing Pakistan to other nations, he said countries with big populations usually divide their territories into many smaller administrative units. India has 39 provinces, China has 31, and the US has 50 states. Pakistan, despite being the fifth-most populous country, still has only four provinces.
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He concluded that provincial structures should be redesigned for better governance and that ethnic politics has damaged serious discussions on reform.
