The Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry has officially released its highly anticipated Security Survey 2026, cautioning that a visible deterioration of law and order in Karachi, coupled with persistent security challenges across western territories, continues to weigh on foreign investor confidence. Conducted in June 2026 among the leading multinational corporations operating throughout the country, the annual assessment highlights a critical disconnect between localized public safety and commercial expansion. Notably, the top leadership of 71 percent of respondent member companies ranked national security within their top three operational business concerns, reinforcing the reality that security vulnerabilities remain a major structural impediment to broader economic activity and capital inflows.
A granular analysis of the geographic data points reveals that security perceptions in Karachi, the nation’s primary economic engine, have deteriorated compared to the preceding year. The proportion of multinational respondents reporting a worsening metropolitan security environment rose to 42 percent, up from 41 percent documented in 2025. The situation appears far more severe in the country’s western regions, where an overwhelming 81 percent of business respondents in Quetta and 86 percent throughout the rest of Balochistan reported a steadily deteriorating security landscape, presenting severe operational challenges for infrastructure and industrial projects situated in those corridors.
Rampant street crime has emerged as the foremost concern for corporate entities, with 50 percent of survey participants reporting an escalating trend in street crimes across Karachi, marking an increase from 45 percent last year. A similar trajectory was recorded in Quetta, where anxieties surrounding street crime surged to 37 percent compared to just 24 percent in 2025. This pervasive lawlessness has trickled down to daily corporate logistics; 32 percent of respondents noted that security conditions directly affecting their own business setups have deteriorated. Furthermore, corporate concerns regarding employee safety during daily commutes worsened noticeably in Karachi, rising to 45 percent, and hit a critical 83 percent in Quetta.
Commenting on these findings, OICCI Secretary General M. Abdul Aleem emphasized the inherent resilience and long-term economic commitment of foreign investors to the country, while reminding state authorities that security must be treated as a critical economic enabler rather than a simple policing matter. The survey also noted a distinct decline in the business community’s assessment of civilian law enforcement capacity. Positive ratings for the Karachi Police fell sharply to 30 percent from 38 percent last year, while the Sindh Police dropped to 16 percent from 26 percent. In contrast, the Sindh Rangers and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police recorded positive performance deviations, climbing to 43 percent and 40 percent approval ratings respectively.
Beyond domestic friction points, external regional geopolitical developments have added fresh variables to the corporate security burden. A significant 88 percent of surveyed multinational organizations reported that the ongoing Middle East conflict has negatively impacted their security ecosystem, creating clear bottlenecks in supply chains and logistics security for 83 percent of members, reducing overall business activity for 69 percent, and threatening basic employee safety for 38 percent. Despite these overlapping domestic and global bottlenecks, 87 percent of OICCI member firms remain confident enough to hold high-level board and management meetings inside the country, showcasing deep underlying trust in Pakistan’s long-term economic potential. To capitalize on this corporate resilience, the chamber has urged the federal and provincial governments to immediately sustain targeted security interventions, reinforce local policing capacities, and accelerate institutional reforms to build a predictable, safe operating environment.
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