A MALE child born in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas today will have to face many obstacles before he is able to earn enough to live a decent life.

A child born in FATA does not have the same rights as bestowed upon the rest of his fellow citizens by the state of Pakistan. His years of hard work in school and then intermediate and a degree college would be no more than a waste of time and go unrewarded.

He wouldn’t be able to find a job in his own region as there is no industry or economic activity worth the name. So he has to migrate to other regions of Pakistan in search of a livelihood.

Fata’s children have limited opportunities, their potential being to work as drivers, labourers or watchman. I wonder whether Pakistan will ever have a prime minister who hails from Fata.

Nawaz Afridi

Islamabad

Published in Dawn, February 27th, 2017