Islamabad:
The National Security Committee (NSC), the best civilian forum in the country for the development of security policies, has not even met once in the past year, marking an unprecedented period in its operation, according to the annual return journal published by the Pakistani Institute for Legislative and Transparency (Pildat).
The annual NSC performance evaluation carried out by Pildat for the deadline from March 5, 2024 to March 4, 2025 highlights a disturbing trend in the governance structure.
Created in 2013, the NSC did not condemn a single meeting throughout the year, with 2024-25 the first time in history that the committee remained completely inactive.
Although the federal cabinet meets regularly, nothing indicates either that the firm committee on the defense which provided such a forum before the creation of NSC was reoperative.
The report noted that the former first first Nawaz Sharif, during his 2013-2017 mandate, only convened eight NSC meetings, while Shahid Khaqan Abbasi – during his mandate in August 2017-2018 – considerably increased the frequency, on average nearly 10 meetings per year.
Imran Khan – Prime Minister from 2018 to 2022 – carried out on average approximately three NSC meetings per year, while Shehbaz Sharif, during his previous mandate from 2022 to 2023, summoned on average five per year.
However, during the last year (2024) of the coalition government led by PML-N, which took office in March 2024, the NSC did not meet once.
The absence of NSC meetings is also reflected in government responses to security incidents. Instead of summoning the NSC, the government seems to have relied on forums led by soldiers such as the Conference of Corps Commanders and the Apex Committee of the National Action Plan.
This also sidelined the role of the NSC in the development of structured policies, noted the report.
The report underlined that another critical concern was the continuing absence of a national security adviser (NSA), leaving a strategic void within the framework of the security policy of Pakistan.
On the other hand, countries with established national security mechanisms, such as the United Kingdom, guarantee regular CNS meetings, often every week, to proactively manage security risks.
“Pildat believes that Pakistan’s lack of an institutionalized national security approach weakens democratic surveillance and limits the country’s ability to respond effectively to security threats through structured consultations.”
