Consumables and collaborations

I have had the privilege of working with remarkable scientists and engineers at multiple universities in Pakistan. They are driven by the same questions that motivate a large number of scholars everywhere - inquiry, curiosity, the opportunity to understand the world around us and the hope to make the world better through knowledge and action. Over the last two decades, things have only gotten more difficult for researchers in the country. This is particularly true for experimental researchers. While the economic downturn and inflation are part of the problem, they are not the only factor. Over the last decade, government spending on HEC and research has all but evaporated. Another major, and rarely discussed problem, is the absence of local producers of research reagents and consumables. Large international companies that make research consumables do not have a footprint in Pakistan. In the absence of those, researchers are dependent on third party vendors that add their own mark-ups on the cost, making essential consumables prohibitively expensive. Every year, I learn about basic consumables for research that are far more expensive in Pakistan than they would be in the US or Europe. With higher prices (due to rupee depreciation, inflation and third party mark-ups) and lower available funds, research becomes even more challenging. Poor regulatory oversight, delays at customs and lack of awareness about adequate storage during transportation add to the misery.

There are two questions here that one needs to think about. First is perhaps the most basic one. Why do we need consumables, or products that are so expensive? The answer lies in the nature of scientific research. Discovery at the cutting edge means doing something that is novel - and working at the cutting edge (particularly in experimental sciences) requires access to sophisticated equipment, tools and consumables. Then there is a more practical aspect as well. Scientific research requires funding, and in our case funding increasingly means international grants. To be competitive internationally, one has to offer new ideas and ability to move the research enterprise forward. That promise rests on prior work and demonstration of capacity. Without access to modern tools and consumables, few funding agencies would be convinced that the researcher can deliver on the work they propose. Thus the ability to attract funding becomes even more challenging.

The second question is about what to do. One possibility here would be to abandon the idea of experimental work. While that argument may have some merits, I do believe there are very important questions in basic and applied sciences we can make contributions to, and make an impact locally and globally. From health to agriculture, materials to energy, water to infrastructure, there are important and contextually relevant questions in both basic and applied sciences that merit our attention. So if we agree to this premise (i.e. of continuing experimental work), we are left with only one option - to develop consumables locally, regionally and with other partners. While developing highly sophisticated equipment will be quite challenging in the short term due to lack of industrial capacity, creating consumables are not an impossible task. It turns out Pakistan is not the only country with similar realities - aspirations for research, uncertain economy and exploitation by third party vendors. Countries in South America have created hubs for developing and sharing consumables that meet the quality standards and are economically viable (Science Magazine covered some of these efforts on Dec 12, 2024). These partnerships are aiming to solve the very problem that plagues our system.

Pakistani colleagues may choose to partner with their peers in these countries, or may create their own hubs - our needs may be similar to those in Latin America, or we may find colleagues in other parts of the world. Solutions like these take time to develop, and require both dedication and patience - but they can pan out. Maybe someone out there is thinking about the same problems as we are, and that someone does have some solutions that may work for us. There is no reason not to look.