World Bank Assesses Urban Development and Financial Management Reforms in Secondary Cities
Representatives from the Directorate of Urban & Regional Policy and Strategic Planning, including Mr. Syed Jawad Muzaffar (Director DURPSP) and Ms. Naila Haque (Deputy Director Environment), Mr. Zulfiqar Ali (Deputy Director Housing/ Urban Planning) participated in an event as part of a World Bank review mission conducted from January 27 to 30, 2025.
The mission focused on Hyderabad and secondary cities such as Sukkur, Larkana, Nawabshah, and Mirpurkhas, to assess potential support for fiscal and public financial management reforms aimed at enhancing service delivery.
The evaluation covered key urban development areas, including:
🔹 Municipal Service Delivery
🔹Infrastructure Planning
🔹Revenue Enhancement Measures
🔹Urban Resilience Frameworks
The review examined:
🔹The essential services provided by secondary cities.
🔹The current state of service delivery.
🔹The financial management (FM) capacity and planned public financial management (PFM) reforms in these cities.
Meetings were held with Mayors, Deputy Commissioners, Municipal Commissioners, and other key officials to discuss existing challenges and ongoing initiatives. City officials identified priority areas for World Bank support, while site visits provided insights into urban infrastructure.
Analysis will shape project proposals to meet urban priorities.
Presentations on the master plans of the mentioned towns were delivered by the representatives of the DURPSP, highlighting key focus areas along with important aspects of the utility sector, revenue mobilization, resilience, and disaster management. These included demand analysis, sector challenges, and proposed projects outlined in the master plan to address utility-related issues in each town.
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Imran Bhatti is an accomplished public sector leader with nearly two decades of experience spanning urban governance, disaster resilience, institutional reform, and policy innovation. His career reflects a consistent commitment to designing and delivering transformative initiatives that improve citizens’ lives.
As Director General of Urban Regional Policy & Strategic Planning and the founding Project Director of the Yellow Line BRT in Karachi, he has led large-scale infrastructure and mobility projects in complex, fragmented governance environments.
His frontline leadership during the 2010 floods, Cyclone Phet, and the 2011 torrential rains underscores his expertise in disaster management and resilience planning.
Holding a Master of Public Policy from Monash University, he combines strategic foresight with evidence-based approaches to policy design, regulatory governance, and institutional capacity building.
His experience also includes senior roles overseeing food safety regulation, solid waste management, and public transport contracting, demonstrating a track record of transparent procurement, stakeholder engagement, and merit-based administration. Driven by integrity and purpose, he is dedicated to advancing sustainable urban development, strengthening institutional accountability, and fostering inclusive, resilient communities.
