Peshawar - The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has set up Pakistan’s first Behavioural Insights Unit (BIU), joining governments in UK, US, Peru, Singapore, Qatar, and many other countries around the world, which are leveraging behavioural science tools for cost-effective, citizen-centred, and easily implementable solutions to modern policy problems.  

“The public finance management focus of the new BIU makes it the first of its kind not only in Pakistan, but the global south,” remarked Taimur Jhagra, KP Minister for Finance, who was one of the earliest supporters of the idea. 

Work on the MindLab BIU started last year, with support from the SEED programme, funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). 

Hassan Al Thawadi of Qatar reiterated his commitment to support KP in its effort to use evidence-based tools such as behavioural science “as part of a broader policy of the Supreme Committee to create long lasting legacies, particularly in the global south.” 

Full support has also been provided by the offices of the Chief Secretary and Chief Minister in KP from day one. 

This unit, set up in the Finance Department, aims to change the way in which policy issues are defined, approached, and resolved by the government. Policy-makers often encounter implementation problems that lead to suboptimal results for government but also for citizens, as entrepreneurs, taxpayers, investors, homeowners, motor vehicle operators, or consumers of public and private goods.  

As an example, if parents do not enrol children in schools, education policy cannot work. COVID response will fail unless citizens adopt necessary SOPs. Rather than trying to implement policies through coercive methods, insights from behavioural science can help us better understand people’s biases and allow us to review programmes from a behavioural lens to work toward desired policy outcomes. 

With B4D onboard, KP’s MindLab is now ideally positioned to deliver impact on-ground. As stated by Vardah Malik, the Investment Advisor for SEED programme: “Global experiences tell us that nudge units need 3 key elements to succeed: support from the government, clear scope of work, and adequate technical resources for analytical work. The government has been supportive from the very beginning, our policy focus is clearly defined, and with technical support and mentoring from B4D, the Unit is well-equipped for success.”