Sustainable development: Investment in social sectors would address extremist recruitment, help economy

Timo Pakala says economic opportunities for youth will save them from extremists.

ISLAMABAD: At a time when Pakistan is at a crossroads due to the tumultuous political and security situation, a UN official has emphasised the need to invest in social sectors, especially education and health and nutrition, as well as the service sector to move the country forward and achieve sustainable economic development.

United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan Timo Pakala, who is leaving the country on Monday after completing his four year assignment, said in an interview with The Express Tribune that a growing number of young people in Pakistan and out-of-school children were becoming major challenges for the country’s security and economic development.

He said that young people and out-of-school children who do not contribute to the economy due to their sheer lack of skills and education, are being seen as a security threat for the country and the region.



“If young people do not have anything to look forward to, they can be recruited by extremism groups, a phenomenon that Pakistan continues to suffer from,” he said.

“Alternatives for the young people will reduce the risks of security incidents. People who are easily brainwashed by extremists can only be dealt with using a strong education system and provision of services. Otherwise, the gap will be filled by these groups,” Pakala said.

The UN official said that while the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) cover a broader array of issues and are coming to an end, it was unfortunate to see that Pakistan was not on track to achieve them. “The sluggish effort only picked up momentum last year or so….to accelerate the process and to ensure enrolment in primary schools,” he said.

While appreciating the efforts of the federal and provincial governments to come together to work on education under the MDGs, he said that the governments were now making efforts to overcome bottlenecks to send about six million children to school.

“While the focus is just on one goal (education), this is also good” he said, adding that Vision 2025 must be pursued with political will. “Moving on to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) does not mean that challenges aren’t there,” he said.

“You cannot have sustainable economic development unless you have well educated, well nourished, and healthy population. There is no shortcut to development,” he said.

Pakala arrived in Pakistan in 2010, a year when the country was struck by one of the worst floods in its history. “It was an extremely difficult and traumatic time for Pakistan and we were gearing up to provide humanitarian assistance to millions of people” he said.

Over the years, Pakala said that while natural disasters kept reoccurring with magnitude that affected thousands of households, Pakistan has managed to confront them with resilience. The 2014 floods that affected two million people saw an appreciable response from the Punjab government, he said.

“If I look at the trends from 2010, disasters have taught the country a lot. There is a positive trajectory in the capacity of the country’s response. There are very few countries that could even fathom a situation such as this,” he said.

Pakala said that the safe return of the displaced population remains a major challenge for Pakistan and the UN was working was working with the government of Pakistan to find a sustainable solution to the displacement issue.

With 1.6 million dislocated people, we hope that half of them will go home this year, he said.

“The UN is also working on strengthening the civilian justice system and civil institutions in the medium term to help address some of the problems of rule of law.” “My four years in Pakistan left a lasting impression. People have always been hospitable. The diverse culture is the richness of Pakistan. It has a bright future, it just needs to focus on a few things,” said Pakala.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 21^st, 2015.