The Punjab Revenue Authority and the World Bank have agreed to introduce advanced digital systems to expand the tax base and improve revenue collection in Punjab. The agreement was reached on Monday during a meeting between PRA Chairman Moazzam Iqbal Sipra and a World Bank delegation led by Regional Director Michael Roggi and Manager Sylvia Solf, according to a PRA spokesperson, marking a fresh push to bring digital tools into how the province tracks and collects tax revenue. Participants at the meeting discussed modernising the provincial tax system, the use of digital databases in tax collection, and the Digital Economy Enhancement Project, a broader World Bank supported initiative that has also featured in PDA’s recent engagements with the institution. Both sides agreed to adopt modern tax models and international best practices drawn from other countries, suggesting the reforms will look beyond Pakistan’s existing tax administration approach for guidance on how digital systems can be structured to widen the tax net.
Sipra told the delegation that digital tools would be used to bring new businesses into the tax net, describing digital data as a way to help identify tax evasion, misappropriation and discrepancies in business records. This framing positions digital systems not just as a convenience for filing and processing but as a mechanism for catching businesses that may currently be operating outside the formal tax system or misreporting their financial activity. The meeting also proposed integrating data from different government departments to build a more effective collection system, an approach that would allow PRA to cross reference records held by other departments rather than relying solely on data submitted directly by taxpayers.
The World Bank delegation said the digital monitoring and tax administration systems of PRA would be further strengthened as part of this collaboration. With technical and financial support from the World Bank, PRA and the Punjab Information Technology Board will jointly prepare a working plan for digital tax reforms, bringing together the revenue authority’s domain expertise with PITB’s technical capacity to build out the systems needed for the reform effort.
Sipra said modern technology would allow better use of data on tax returns, payments and business activities, adding that data analytics would be promoted in line with international standards. He said a practical reform roadmap would be developed with World Bank assistance, indicating that the specific technical details of the digital systems and their rollout timeline are still being worked out between PRA, PITB and the World Bank. The agreement adds to a series of engagements between Punjab’s provincial institutions and the World Bank around digital reform, reflecting continued interest in using data driven systems to strengthen revenue collection and reduce tax evasion across the province.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
