The 18th Amendment: Revival of Pakistan as a Federal State

Abstract

The study which uses a qualitative research approach, seeks to answer the question of how Pakistan's 18th Amendment has helped the country's parliamentary democracy advance. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan's constitution, which was drafted in 1973, achieves a reasonable balance between central government authority and local government authority. In April 2010, the Senate and National Assembly of Pakistan approved the 18th amendment to the constitution of 1973, which was welcomed as a significant step in regaining the legitimacy of the document. The findings of this study demonstrate that the 18th Amendment is regarded as the reform package with the greatest significance in the annals of Pakistan's constitutional history. The study suggested that decentralization of powers under the 18th amendment can be a good example of provincial self-government, but there must be a clear balance sheet between the center and the provinces when it comes to the distribution of economic resources.