Transparency International Pakistan (TIP) has for years scrutinised corruption, governance and transparency in public institutions. But who scrutinises the watchdog itself - its legal structure, hundreds of millions of rupees in funding, donor relationships, governance arrangements, complaint-handling mechanisms and the methodology it uses to measure corruption?
TIP is registered as a trust in the Industries and Commerce Directorate of Sindh under the name Transparency International Pakistan Trust. Its trust deed, originally executed in 2002 and subsequently amended, gives the organisation a broad mandate covering transparency in governance, politics and business transactions, combating corruption, implementation of laws and policies, and transparency in the functioning of law-enforcement agencies and government departments involved in regulatory, supervisory or investigative functions.
The questions, therefore, concern the breadth and oversight of that mandate: whether every present activity can be directly linked to the stated objects; whether the broad incidental-powers clause is being used to extend the mandate; who independently determines compliance with the objects; and how conflicts are resolved when the Board itself oversees them.
TIP's published financial statements show that between 2010 and 2025, it reported grants of about Rs764.6 million and other income of about Rs68.1 million, making a combined reported income of approximately Rs832.7 million. The annual figures vary considerably; grants and other income stood at about Rs28.4 million in 2010, rose to more than Rs84.2 million in 2015, and reached about Rs100.2 million in 2020.
They subsequently fell sharply before rising again to about Rs45.4 million in 2024 and Rs55.4 million in 2025. TIP stated that during the last five years, its primary donor was the Transparency International Secretariat.
However, TIP's own 2025 Civil Society Governance Diagnostic Assessment acknowledges financial support from the European Union. The response does not explain whether that support was provided directly to TIP or through the Secretariat, nor does it provide the amount in response to questions seeking details of major foreign funding.
TIP operated the USAID Anti-Fraud Hotline project from January 2011 to November 2019. According to TIP, complaints were handled under standard operating procedures approved by the USAID (یو ایس ایڈ) Office of Inspector General.
Historical material shows the hotline dealt with thousands of complaints, but the organisation did not provide a consolidated figure for all complaints handled or a detailed assessment of how they were independently verified. The project also raises a governance question concerning the appointment of Fawad Gilani as project manager, which TIP maintains was disclosed at the time of the hiring process.
As the organisation continues to influence policy and public perception, the demand for greater institutional accountability remains a critical point of discourse among civil society observers.