In a landmark move to modernise public service delivery and advance digital financial inclusion, Bank Alfalah has partnered with the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to support the rollout of Pakistan’s first cash‑less model city. Under the initiative, the CDA’s One‑Window Facilitation Centre has adopted a fully digital payment infrastructure, enabling citizens to complete payments without using cash.
Speaking at the launch event, the CDA Chairman and Chief Commissioner Islamabad emphasized that the initiative aligns with the broader vision to render Islamabad a leader in digital governance. Representatives from Bank Alfalah participated alongside other stakeholders, including financial institutions and payment platform providers.
At the heart of the new system is a streamlined digital transaction process featuring QR codes and integration with multiple platforms such as mobile wallets and banking apps. Citizens visiting the One‑Window Directorate can now pay fees and access services via their preferred digital channel, eliminating the need to carry cash and improving transparency and convenience.
For its part, Bank Alfalah has committed to leveraging its digital banking infrastructure to support the deployment. The bank’s involvement signals a significant endorsement of the public‑private collaboration required to roll out large-scale cashless ecosystems in Pakistan. The publicly shared notice of the bank outlines a dedicated phone‑banking number (021‑111‑225‑111) and email contact (contactus@bankalfalah.com) for suggestions or complaints. Additionally, if customers feel their issues have not been resolved satisfactorily, they can lodge complaints with the State Bank of Pakistan’s “Sunwai” portal.
This initiative comes at a time when federal authorities and regulatory agencies in Pakistan are actively encouraging digital payment adoption to boost efficiency, mitigate risk, and reduce reliance on physical cash. By positioning Islamabad as a “model city” for cashless transformation, the CDA aims to extend the system gradually to markets, shopping centers, wholesale and retail hubs across the city in phases.
The benefits of a cashless model city are multifold. For citizens, the key advantages include faster transactions, reduced need to carry cash, and improved service transparency. For the government and regulatory bodies, the switch facilitates better tracking and oversight of transactions, lowers the cost of cash handling, and enhances governance through digital logs and audit‑friendly records.
That said, there are operational challenges to scaling such a system: ensuring adequate digital literacy among users, maintenance of robust infrastructure and network uptime, extending coverage to informal sectors, and safeguarding against cyber threats and fraud. The CDA’s chair underscored the latter point, noting that one of the aims of the initiative is to “safeguard citizens from fraud and deception” by replacing cash with secure digital payment mechanisms.
The involvement of Bank Alfalah signals a commitment from the private financial sector to partner with public agencies in building a digital‑first city framework. As the rollout progresses, tracking metrics such as increases in digital transaction volumes, decline in cash‑based payments, user satisfaction levels, and extension into private sector marketplaces will be key indicators of success.
In the coming months, as services at the one‑stop centers and other city‑wide outlets transition to the cash‑less model, stakeholders will likely focus on continuous user education, onboarding smaller merchants and vendors, and scaling system reliability. The success of such a model could serve as a blueprint for other Pakistani cities aiming to make the turn to cashless governance and citizen services.
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