The government has begun work to establish Pakistan’s first National WASH Accounts, a unified national database intended to transform how water, sanitation and hygiene services are planned, financed and monitored across the country. The Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination is leading the effort in partnership with the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and technical support from WaterAid, the World Health Organization and UNICEF.
Officials say the National WASH Accounts will close longstanding data gaps that have hampered evidence-based decision making. Mohammad Saleem Shaikh, the ministry’s media spokesperson and WASH policy advocacy specialist, described the move as the first time Pakistan will adopt a single national framework to track the state of water and sanitation services, monitor investments and oversee public spending with standardised, timely information.
The system is designed to give federal and provincial authorities a shared evidence base for identifying underserved areas and directing resources where they are most needed. By generating comparable data across provinces, the National WASH Accounts aim to strengthen coordination, improve project oversight and reduce duplication in service delivery.
Modern digital tools and artificial intelligence will be incorporated into the architecture to speed up data collection, verification and reporting. Ms Aisha Humera Moriani, Federal Secretary for Climate Change & Environmental Coordination, said the initiative will boost transparency and accountability while helping Pakistan build climate-resilient water and sanitation services amid growing environmental pressures.
Officials also noted the National WASH Accounts will support stronger reporting on Sustainable Development Goal 6 and align with broader national strategies including URAAN Pakistan and the Ministry of Planning’s 5E framework. The government expects the new data platform to move policy from reactive responses to proactive, evidence-based planning for sustainable WASH outcomes across Pakistan.
