A Unique Model of Governance and Market Accessibility: How PSBA Stands Apart from All Other Public Welfare Bodies in Pakistan

Abstract

In this paper, the author discusses the Punjab Sahulat Bazaars Authority (PSBA) as a special system of governance and accessibility to markets, which is unlike all other state welfare institutions in Pakistan. The study relies on the qualitative methodology and uses government reports, official documents, third-party assessments, and independent media to evaluate the legal, financial, and working performance of PSBA. Transformative initiatives launched by PSBA under the strategic management of Naveed Rafaqat Ahmad were real-time price boards, solar-powered infrastructure, inclusive vendor policies which enabled women traders and mobile bazaars which served those areas which were underserved. The results indicate that PSBA continues to outcompete ideal organizations with regards to price control, digital advancement, and service provision, offering customers up to 35 percent discounts over market prices. This paper finds that PSBA is a citizen-based institutional model, which is empowered by law and provides comprehensive transparency, is an eminent model to be replicated in other emergent economies in regards to their public welfare and market efficiency. Using a qualitative comparative case study approach, the study finds PSBA’s affordability innovations and governance structure to be significantly distinct from peer institutions.