Organisations looking at Pakistan from abroad usually need answers to a short list of questions: how large the market is, who the main players are, which rules apply, and what could change. Much of that can be answered through desk research, without commissioning a survey, provided the work draws on the right sources and is honest about their limits.
This guide explains how desk-based market research on Pakistan works, what it costs with PIVRA, and how to brief a provider so that the result can be used in a decision.
Desk research or fieldwork?
Desk research assembles and analyses information that already exists: official statistics, regulator publications, company filings, trade data, legislation, published research and media reporting. Fieldwork collects new information through surveys, interviews or observation.
Desk research is the right starting point when the question is about the structure of a market, the regulatory environment, trade flows, public spending or the policy outlook. Fieldwork becomes necessary when the question is about consumer preferences, prices at the point of sale, or the views of specific stakeholders that are not recorded anywhere. A good provider will tell you which of the two your question requires before quoting.
PIVRA works through desk research only. Where a question cannot be answered properly without primary data, the proposal says so rather than substituting secondary sources.
Where reliable information on Pakistan comes from
The quality of desk research depends on its sources. For Pakistan, the most useful primary sources are held by federal and provincial bodies, and many are published only on official portals or in Urdu.
| Source | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) | Population census, labour force, household income and expenditure, prices and inflation, and merchandise trade statistics. |
| State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) | Balance of payments, services exports by category and country, banking and monetary data, and foreign exchange regulations. |
| Finance Division | The annual Pakistan Economic Survey and federal budget documents. |
| Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) | Company registration, listed company disclosures, and regulation of corporate and non-bank financial sectors. |
| Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) | Tax law, statutory regulatory orders, customs tariffs and tax statistics. |
| Sector regulators | Licensing, tariffs and sector data from bodies such as the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, NEPRA (power), OGRA (oil and gas) and DRAP (pharmaceuticals). |
| Provincial governments | Provincial budgets, development plans, provincial statistics bureaus, and provincial revenue authorities that administer sales tax on services. |
A fuller list is set out in our guide to official data sources on Pakistan.
What drives the cost
The fee for desk research is driven by four things: how broad the question is, how hard the sources are to reach, how quickly the answer is needed, and what form the deliverable takes. A single defined question that rests on well-published national data costs less than a sector-wide study that requires provincial records, Urdu-language material and a data annex.
PIVRA publishes its starting fees:
| Format | Typical scope | Clients outside Pakistan | Clients in Pakistan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research Brief | One defined question, 5 to 10 pages, 5 to 7 working days | From USD 650 | From PKR 85,000 |
| Research Study | A market or sector study, 20 to 40 pages, 2 to 4 weeks | From USD 2,000 | From PKR 275,000 |
| Research Retainer | Ongoing monitoring and research requests | From USD 1,500 per month | From PKR 200,000 per month |
Every engagement is quoted as a fixed fee in writing after a free scoping exchange. See Pricing for what each format includes.
How to brief a provider
The single most useful thing a client can do is write a clear brief. It does not need to be long. It should cover:
- The decision the research supports. “Whether to enter the market through a local partner or a subsidiary” produces better research than “an overview of the market”.
- The specific questions. Three to six questions, in order of priority.
- Scope. The products or services, the geography (national, a province, specific cities) and the time period of interest.
- What you already know. Existing reports, figures you have seen and want verified, and sources you already hold.
- The deliverable. A short brief, a full report, a data annex, a slide deck, or a call to walk through findings.
- The deadline and budget range. Knowing both allows the provider to propose a scope that fits rather than quoting blind.
What a good deliverable looks like
A usable research deliverable on Pakistan should reference every material figure to a source the client can check, state plainly where data is missing, old or contested, separate findings from interpretation, and answer the questions in the brief before adding anything else.
Next step
Send a short outline of your question, scope and deadline to info@pivra.org. The team replies within two business days with clarifying questions or a fixed quote.