Despite tall claims of authority, downsizing ministries and abolishing thousands of sanctioned posts, the federal government’s expenditure on civil administration and pension payments has continued to rise sharply over the past five years, with the latest fiscal data showing another double-digit increase in the first quarter of FY26, Dawn reported.
According to the Ministry of Finance, spending under “Running of Civil Government” reached Rs161.2 billion between July and September, up 13% from Rs142.5 billion in the same period last year.
The government eliminated more than 150,000 posts last year and announced the abolition of another 54,000 vacant positions, which Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said would save more than Rs56 billion annually. Restructuring and mergers of ministries are also underway, but expenditure pressures persist.
Data shows the pattern is longstanding: the first quarter of last year posted an 8% rise, after a 29% jump a year earlier. Compared to the first quarter of FY22, when spending stood at Rs89.5bn, civil administration costs have now grown nearly 80%. The full-year bill for running civil government last year exceeded Rs892bn.
Pension payments have risen even more steeply. Expenditure reached Rs249.5bn in Q1 FY26, a 10% increase from Rs223bn last year. Over five years, the pension bill has climbed almost 125%, rising from Rs111bn in Q1 FY22 to a full-year cost of Rs911bn in FY25.
Subsidy payments, which the government can delay unlike salaries and pensions, showed significant fluctuation. Subsidies surged to Rs120bn in the first quarter from just Rs20bn last year. In Q1 FY24, disbursements were only Rs2.5bn, while the preceding two years saw Rs93bn and Rs74bn. The annual subsidy bill in FY25 stood at Rs1.298 trillion.
