The need to come out of illusions
Favourable geography and natural resources not enough to make country thrive
Favourable geography and natural resources not enough to make country thrive. PHOTO: FILE
DELAWARE:
“Pakistan is strategically located and is blessed with natural resources”.
Political leaders and jingoistic intellectuals widely utter such statements. First, I believe that this illusion has kept us away from self-accountability and putting efforts to make Pakistan a prosperous and thriving country.
Second, geography and natural resources do not make the only recipe for development and prosperity of a nation. Third, it is the people and institutions of a society that can engender prosperity without even a favourable geography and natural resources.
We can trace the history of these thoughts to Muqaddimah by Ibn Khaldun in the 14th century in which he spelled the role and interaction of people and various institutions for the economic/social development process. More recently, Francis Fukuyama has referred to “modern state” as a defining feature of successful nations and merit-based bureaucracy is the key factor in this regard.
Douglas North inspired a great deal of research on the role and nature of formal and informal institutions — rules of the game in a society that shape human interaction. Instead of the rhetoric of strategic location and natural resources we need to carefully assess our political, economic, legal and administrative institutions.
For example, see the flawed process of formation and governance of political parties. Look at the dismal state of access to justice and rule of law. The quality of administrative and economic institutions has deteriorated. An unfavourable business environment in the cities is promoting idle investment in real estate and enlarging informal economy which has negative implications for rapidly urbanising young labour force.
The slowdown in domestic and foreign investment is often attributed to the security situation but it is a lame excuse. No terrorist has ever stopped judiciary and law agencies to enforce commercial contracts. Neither have they asked tax authorities to make tax payments more complex and burdensome.
The education system and societal norms have not proven conducive for the development and prosperity. Lower investment and fragmentation in the education system have embedded inequalities and promoted social chaos. A large number of children still remain out of school and most of the school going children end up with the poor quality of education. Public schools are no more a choice for even those who cannot afford private schools. Ethnic and religious intolerance and lack of ability to develop shared agenda and take it through are at the heart of informal values of the society.
In this state of institutional quality and lack of human development efforts, no geography or natural resource endowment can make a society prosperous and developed. Indeed, Pakistan is surrounded by a very tough geography — which has created more troubles for us than any benefit so far. Very recently, we can foresee some geographic benefits in the form of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Otherwise, we are living in the least connected region of the world and our trading and business relations with neighbouring and regional countries are minimal, yet we cherish geographic location. The reason is we have not reoriented our policy and institutional landscape towards growth promoting objectives and could not develop human resources. No doubt, importance of defence capabilities has increased immensely in the globalised instability but social cohesion and economic strength are essential ingredients of the broader national security.
We need to come out of the illusions and hopes of miracles to happen. What we can do is more important and relevant to the current situation than the rhetoric of strategic location and natural resources. Our future will be defined by the efforts to reform political, economic, administrative and legal institutions and achievements in education. I am all for patriotism and love for the country but it demands we develop clarity what matters most for development and prosperity.
Some of these concepts are echoing in the plans and statements since independence but with little implementation. It would be appropriate to share an excerpt from the second five-year plan (1960-65); “Economic growth is dependent on the effective use of the human and material resources of the nation…. Of the two fundamental forms of wealth, the human resources are clearly more important. Societies severely handicapped by scarcity of physical assets have reached high levels of welfare through the genius and capacities of their people.”
The writer is a public policy researcher and practitioner
Published in The Express Tribune, December 26th, 2016.
“Pakistan is strategically located and is blessed with natural resources”.
Political leaders and jingoistic intellectuals widely utter such statements. First, I believe that this illusion has kept us away from self-accountability and putting efforts to make Pakistan a prosperous and thriving country.
Second, geography and natural resources do not make the only recipe for development and prosperity of a nation. Third, it is the people and institutions of a society that can engender prosperity without even a favourable geography and natural resources.
We can trace the history of these thoughts to Muqaddimah by Ibn Khaldun in the 14th century in which he spelled the role and interaction of people and various institutions for the economic/social development process. More recently, Francis Fukuyama has referred to “modern state” as a defining feature of successful nations and merit-based bureaucracy is the key factor in this regard.
Douglas North inspired a great deal of research on the role and nature of formal and informal institutions — rules of the game in a society that shape human interaction. Instead of the rhetoric of strategic location and natural resources we need to carefully assess our political, economic, legal and administrative institutions.
For example, see the flawed process of formation and governance of political parties. Look at the dismal state of access to justice and rule of law. The quality of administrative and economic institutions has deteriorated. An unfavourable business environment in the cities is promoting idle investment in real estate and enlarging informal economy which has negative implications for rapidly urbanising young labour force.
The slowdown in domestic and foreign investment is often attributed to the security situation but it is a lame excuse. No terrorist has ever stopped judiciary and law agencies to enforce commercial contracts. Neither have they asked tax authorities to make tax payments more complex and burdensome.
The education system and societal norms have not proven conducive for the development and prosperity. Lower investment and fragmentation in the education system have embedded inequalities and promoted social chaos. A large number of children still remain out of school and most of the school going children end up with the poor quality of education. Public schools are no more a choice for even those who cannot afford private schools. Ethnic and religious intolerance and lack of ability to develop shared agenda and take it through are at the heart of informal values of the society.
In this state of institutional quality and lack of human development efforts, no geography or natural resource endowment can make a society prosperous and developed. Indeed, Pakistan is surrounded by a very tough geography — which has created more troubles for us than any benefit so far. Very recently, we can foresee some geographic benefits in the form of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Otherwise, we are living in the least connected region of the world and our trading and business relations with neighbouring and regional countries are minimal, yet we cherish geographic location. The reason is we have not reoriented our policy and institutional landscape towards growth promoting objectives and could not develop human resources. No doubt, importance of defence capabilities has increased immensely in the globalised instability but social cohesion and economic strength are essential ingredients of the broader national security.
We need to come out of the illusions and hopes of miracles to happen. What we can do is more important and relevant to the current situation than the rhetoric of strategic location and natural resources. Our future will be defined by the efforts to reform political, economic, administrative and legal institutions and achievements in education. I am all for patriotism and love for the country but it demands we develop clarity what matters most for development and prosperity.
Some of these concepts are echoing in the plans and statements since independence but with little implementation. It would be appropriate to share an excerpt from the second five-year plan (1960-65); “Economic growth is dependent on the effective use of the human and material resources of the nation…. Of the two fundamental forms of wealth, the human resources are clearly more important. Societies severely handicapped by scarcity of physical assets have reached high levels of welfare through the genius and capacities of their people.”
The writer is a public policy researcher and practitioner
Published in The Express Tribune, December 26th, 2016.