Introduction: Rethinking the Way We Solve Problems

In a world increasingly characterized by complexity, uncertainty, and rapid change, traditional problem-solving approaches are proving increasingly inadequate, especially in the public sector. In Pakistan and beyond, many public policies are still crafted in top-down silos, often disconnected from lived realities of citizen they intend to serve. The result is predictable inefficient systems, poor service delivery, and a growing disconnect between citizens and state institutions.

Design thinking is a human-centred, iterative, and solutions-focused methodology, rooted in empathy and co-creation, which offers a compelling alternative. Unlike conventional models, instead of beginning with policies and imposing them downward, design thinking starts with the people, understanding their needs, constraints, and aspirations. This approach reframes problems, encourages innovation and iteratively improves solutions based on real-world feedback.

In a context like Pakistan, where bureaucratic inertia, rigid hierarchies, resistance to change, and outdated governance models continue to hinder reforms, rethinking how we solve problems is not a luxury. It’s a necessity.

The Structural Challenges: Why Design Thinking Struggles in Pakistan

Design thinking fits perfectly within the urgent reform needs of Pakistan’s public sector. In practice, however, several entrenched challenges make it difficult to implement.

1. Bureaucratic Resistance and Inertia

Government institutions in Pakistan are highly centralised and hierarchical. Decision-making is typically centralised, linear and authority-driven, stifling collaboration and innovation.

2. Superficial Reforms

All too often, “change” is measured in superficial strokes, the addition of new hotlines, apps, desks or even fresh paint in the office. Such window-dressing fails to tackle systemic inefficiency. One criticism during that period called this “cosmetic reforms,” where the appearance of activity camouflages the same old problems.

3. Lack of Citizen Feedback Mechanisms

In the absence of adequate feedback mechanisms, services function in silos. The voice of the citizen does not reach the decision-makers in good time, if at all. Policies tend to be set devoid of concrete proof and evidence.

4. Fixed Mindsets

In many institutions, failure is punished, and adherence to procedure is valued over outcomes. This leads to a culture where innovation is risky, and deviation from the norm is discouraged.

5. Skills and Capacity Gaps

Design thinking requires skills like ethnographic research, rapid prototyping, storytelling, and data-driven iteration, tools that are not part of the typical bureaucratic toolkit in Pakistan. These challenges make design thinking difficult to implement but not impossible. In fact, they underline why it is so necessary.

Key Principles of Design Thinking

To overcome the systemic barriers facing public service delivery in Pakistan, it’s essential to understand the foundational principles of design thinking. At its core, design thinking is not a linear process, but a cyclical one, built on empathy, experimentation, and continuous feedback:

• Empathize: Through direct observation and experience, develop a deep understanding of people you’re designing for, their needs, constraints motivations and fears.
• Define: Reframe the challenge by identifying the root causes behind surface-level symptoms. The goal is to articulate a problem that is grounded in users’ lived experiences.
• Ideate: Brainstorm a wide array of possible solutions, without This phase encourages creativity, divergent thinking, and inclusive brainstorming.
• Prototype: Create simple, low-cost models or representations of your solutions. It is important to understand that prototypes are tools to learn, not to perfect.
• Test: Refining solutions based on feedback iteratively. Refine and adapt ideas based on what works, what fails and why.

This cycle requires collaboration across perspectives and disciplines. As Khalil Gibran once illustrated in a metaphor: The eye saw a mountain. The ear, not hearing it, denied its existence. The hand, not feeling it, also rejected it. Each sense failed to see beyond its capacity. The parable warns of the danger of siloed thinking. Effective solutions require us to see from others’ perspectives.

What the World Has Done: Global Models of Design Thinking in Action

Singapore: Transforming Public Transport

Singapore used design thinking to revolutionize its public transportation. Instead of imposing top-down changes, authorities conducted surveys, interviews, and empathy exercises with commuters. They developed user personas and co-created solutions. Bus stops were redesigned with real-time updates, apps were launched for commuter convenience, and routes were optimized using rider feedback. The result? Shorter wait times, increased satisfaction, and a 30% rise in public transit usage.

Ethiopia: Context-Specific Design

Ethiopia offers a compelling case of design thinking in a developing country context. Volkswagen launched mobility solutions tailored to local constraints, including digital ride-hailing tools and community co-creation sessions. This allowed solutions to be grounded in reality rather than in assumptions. The lesson: design thinking scales across economic conditions when rooted in empathy and context.

What Pakistan Has Tried: Case Example from Governance

While design thinking has yet to be mainstreamed across Pakistan’s public sector, there have been isolated but meaningful applications of design thinking. One of the most significant examples is from Punjab, where the government introduced a digital citizen feedback system to evaluate public services. This initiative was championed at the Chief Secretary level, indicating high-level institutional buy-in. It followed a user-centered approach that closely mirrors the design thinking model:

• Empathize: Engage directly with citizens to identify key grievances in accessing public services.
• Define: Narrow the problem down to the absence of real-time feedback and accountability mechanisms.
• Ideate & Prototype: Co-designed and piloted an SMS-based feedback tool supported by real-time dashboards.
• Test: Piloted in the health sector, system was iteratively refined and scaled to include police, education, and revenue departments.

This approach resulted in over 4 million feedback responses and reduced complaints about bribery and delays and improved citizen trust. The model also directly contributed to SDG 16 (Peace, justice and Strong Institutions) by strengthening transparency and participatory governance. Its success also prompted replication across federal and provincial departments, demonstrating how locally grounded, empathy-driven reform can scale when backed with political will, evidence and citizen feedback.

From Insight to Action: How to Embed Design Thinking in Pakistan

Design thinking cannot be a one-time workshop or a departmental fad. It must become a mindset shift, offering a new way of seeing problems and designing policies. Here is how Pakistan’s institutions can make it stick:

1. Create Safe Spaces for Innovation

Senior leadership must foster environments where failure is seen as a learning opportunity, not a liability. This includes dedicating teams, budgets, and KPIs to innovation.

2. Start Small, Scale Later

Avoid the “grand solution” trap. Instead, pilot new ideas in one department or district. Collect feedback. Iterate. Then scale.

3. Institutionalize Feedback Mechanisms

As products rely on user reviews, public services should depend on citizen voices. Feedback loops, whether through digital platforms or physical suggestion desks, must be embedded into all systems.

4. Invest in Capacity Building

Design thinking should be part of civil service training and mid-career learning. Officials need to be equipped with tools for user research, co-design, prototyping, and agile policy-making.

5. Redesign Processes Around Users

Flip the logic. Instead of starting with policy and pushing down to users, begin with user pain points and build upwards. A revised service design model would look like:

Old Model:

Policy → Process → Systems → Users

New Model:

Users → Service Design → Systems → Policy → Feedback

6. Learn from Change Management Science

As Charles Darwin said: “It is not the strongest species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.”

Applying Lewin’s three-stage change model, Unfreeze, Move, Refreeze can help. Similarly, the ADKAR framework (Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement) reminds us that change must be nurtured at individual and organizational levels.

From Intent to Impact

Design thinking is not a silver bullet but a proven approach that makes the government more responsive, inclusive, and effective. In Pakistan, where citizens often feel alienated by bureaucracy, this shift is not just desirable. It is essential.

The road ahead requires bold leadership, empathetic listening, and the courage to experiment. As one quote reminds us: “We are what we think. All that we are arises from our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.” – Buddha.

Pakistan’s public sector needs fewer policies and more participation. It requires more possibilities, crafted not in isolation but in collaboration with the people, living closest to the problem.

Scaling the Principle: From Pilot to Policy

To promote this human-centered approach more systematically, the Accountability Lab Pakistan (ALP) has taken strategic steps to institutionalize design thinking within public governance. Through formal Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with key government institutions, ALP is co-developing and integrating design thinking into civil service training curricula. The aim is not only to introduce civil servants to the theoretical framework of design thinking, but also to immerse them in live experiences of the process enabling them to understand, apply and internalize the principles through real-world problem-solving. This partnership reflects a growing recognition that sustainable reform comes not from external instruction alone, but from experiential learning embedded within institutions themselves.

About the Author

Muhammad Abubakar works as a Program and Communications Officer at Accountability Lab Pakistan and can be reached out at mabubakar@accountabilitylab.org