Donor-Driven Environmental Governance, Symbolic Compliance, and Monitoring Gaps in Humanitarian Operations: Quantitative Evidence from INGOs in Pakistan

Abstract

This study examines environmental governance in humanitarian operations in Pakistan, focusing on donor-driven compliance, monitoring gaps, and institutional enforcement. Using a cross-sectional quantitative design, data were collected through a structured survey of 41 respondents across 12 international NGOs, covering policy institutionalisation, monitoring systems, donor conditionality, and technological adoption. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, Spearman correlation, and regression analysis were applied to assess governance patterns and compliance drivers. Findings show that while 41.5% of organisations report formal environmental policies, 58.5% demonstrate weak or absent enforcement, indicating symbolic compliance. Monitoring systems are underdeveloped, with 53.7% lacking formal environmental impact assessment and 36.6% tracking no sustainability KPIs. Donor conditionality emerges as the strongest predictor of compliance, particularly where funding penalties exist, while domestic legal frameworks remain weakly embedded. AI adoption is limited but positively associated with long-term compliance. The study concludes that environmental governance is externally driven rather than institutionally embedded. It recommends strengthening internal compliance units, formalising KPI-based monitoring, harmonising donor frameworks, enforcing subcontractor accountability, and investing in digital monitoring tools. These measures are necessary to shift from procedural compliance to operational environmental governance.