Bilawal Kamran
Pakistan has done it again — though not in a way worth celebrating. For the fifth consecutive time, the country has held its position near the bottom of the Henley Passport Index, ranking 103rd out of 106 nations, just above Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan. It is a distinction that reflects not only Pakistan’s diplomatic isolation but also its enduring political and economic fragility. The green passport — once symbolic of national pride — now stands as a reminder of how little has changed in the country’s global standing.
According to the 2025 index, Pakistani passport holders can travel visa-free to just 31 destinations — a list largely comprising small island nations, microstates, and countries few Pakistanis are likely to visit for trade or tourism. By contrast, Singaporeans enjoy visa-free access to 193 countries, while South Koreans and Germans can travel to 190. The difference is not just about convenience — it’s about international credibility. A strong passport signals trust in a nation’s systems; a weak one reflects global doubt about its governance, stability, and rule of law.
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It would be easy to blame global politics or Western bias, but that explanation offers little comfort. A passport is, at its core, an index of international confidence — in a country’s governance, security, and reliability. Pakistan’s low ranking is not an accident; it’s a verdict. It reflects poor diplomacy, policy inconsistency, and weak institutional credibility. The world views Pakistan as unpredictable, and unpredictability is the enemy of trust.
Successive governments have made lofty promises about improving Pakistan’s “image,” but slogans are no substitute for substance. While the Foreign Office issues routine statements about engagement, Pakistan’s global presence remains defensive and reactive. Economic instability, internal political turbulence, and security concerns have consistently undermined attempts to project a stable, investment-friendly identity. Our foreign policy, instead of being driven by economic and regional integration, remains trapped in firefighting mode — alternating between crisis management and misplaced nationalism.
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The Henley Passport Index is not just a travel ranking; it is a mirror of state performance. Countries with open economies, robust institutions, and consistent governance almost always perform better. The same governance that creates investment opportunities also builds global confidence in citizens’ mobility. When Pakistan struggles to attract foreign investors, it also struggles to convince the world that its citizens are low-risk travelers. In short, passport power follows state power.
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Pakistan’s poor ranking should therefore be read as a policy failure — not of the interior ministry that issues passports, but of the broader governance system that defines our international identity. The economy’s chronic instability, the bureaucracy’s inefficiency, and the political elite’s obsession with short-term power struggles have together eroded global trust. Countries open their borders to those they can predict — and Pakistan, regrettably, has become a country the world cannot.
That perception is not entirely unfair. Terrorism, money laundering, corruption, and weak documentation systems have all contributed to global skepticism. Each visa rejection or travel restriction imposed on Pakistanis is part of that broader narrative. Even in regions where historical or religious ties once mattered, Pakistan’s passport has lost goodwill. Countries that once offered visa-on-arrival facilities now demand background checks and security clearances.
The way forward requires more than symbolic gestures. Simply upgrading the passport’s design or adding biometric features will not change how the world perceives Pakistan. What is needed is a comprehensive soft power strategy — one that rebuilds trust through better governance, academic exchange, trade diplomacy, and people-to-people connectivity.
Pakistan should focus on economic diplomacy, making trade, investment, and tourism the cornerstone of its foreign policy. Nations open doors when they see opportunity. Strengthening institutions, stabilizing the economy, and promoting consistent regional cooperation with neighbors like China, Iran, and India could restore credibility faster than any PR campaign. Universities, entrepreneurs, and the creative industries should also become part of Pakistan’s global engagement — showcasing innovation, not insecurity.
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Improving passport power is also linked to domestic reform. A country that cannot guarantee its own citizens clean governance, transparent laws, or secure livelihoods will find few takers abroad. The world judges Pakistan not just by its foreign policy but by how it treats its own people — how it manages human rights, enforces justice, and builds institutions. Diplomacy begins at home.
For now, Pakistan’s green passport remains a metaphor — not of mobility, but of immobility. It represents a state too consumed by internal disarray to claim space in the world. While Singapore and South Korea built global partnerships through education, technology, and trade, Pakistan continues to rely on rhetoric about “image” rather than real reform.
Until Islamabad invests in the kind of power that cannot be embossed or laminated — trust, credibility, and good governance — the Henley Passport Index will continue to tell the same humiliating story year after year.
And so, while others jet across continents, Pakistanis can take ironic comfort in their only guaranteed privilege: being grounded — quite literally. After all, as some might wryly note, you can’t lose your luggage if you never leave the runway.
