This is the second of a two-part series on planning in Pakistan. Read part 1 here.

Can one organisation, with few dozen employees, generate solutions for the myriad problems Pakistan faces? The answer is no. The economic, social, and security challenges faced by Pakistan are far beyond the capacity of any individual organisation, especially one in the public sector.

The composition of the Planning Commission has been the subject of debate as of late. Several former associates of the Commission have something to say after-the-fact about the Commission’s structure and mandate. Most, however, did precious little to fix the Commission while they were running it. Some did try, but those were half-hearted attempts at best, as is evidenced by the outcome where the status quo has been prevailing for decades at the Commission.

While some competent economists, such as Dr. Nadeem ul Haq, have proposed valuable reforms to restructure the Commission, they have all worked from the assumption that we need one Planning Commission to look after the entire nation. Here lies the problem. Pakistan needs a network of planning networks, both in public and private sector, with dedicated mandates focused on one specific challenge at a time. Given the severity of challenges Pakistan faces, it is safe to conclude that a single commission made up even of dedicated and able professionals will not be able to deliver. The success lies in a networked approach to crowd source solutions rather than to toil in isolation.

It is no secret that while other economies with similar endowments as Pakistan took off in the early 90s, Pakistan's economic prospects have gotten worse over the same time period. The Planning Commission must accept some responsibility for failing to deliver solutions for the socio-economic challenges faced by the nation. In their defence, some former associates of the Commission could argue that their advice fell on deaf political ears. If that were to be true, what was then the purpose of continuing to serve in a role that failed to deliver on its mandate?

With nine months completed in office, the Sharif government has had enough time to reorient the Commission. For instance, it should have, by now, acquired the senior professional staff and set priorities to begin its work. A quick look at the website of the Planning Commission suggests otherwise. The Commission's website does not list the names of its chief economist and 12 out of the 13 other senior members. This raises an important question: if the Commission's key intellectual leaders have not yet been appointed, who is running the show. And more importantly, if the ‘show’ can run without the ‘experts’, does then the Commission really need them?

Source: http://www.pc.gov.pk/?page_id=151, accessed on February 26, 2014.

The Commission’s website is indicative of the shortcomings it faces internally. Even its cover-page could not escape typos and lists the Deputy Chairman as ‘Pro. Ahsan Iqbal.’ As the premier socio-economic think tank, the Commission has not much to offer in data, publications, and other reference materials. If one is seeking research materials on Pakistan, the Planning Commission has not much to offer from its website. This is not to say that the Commission lacks data and publications. What the Commission lacks is the willingness to be a conduit for knowledge mobilisation and be Pakistan’s primary data warehouse.

Source: http://www.pc.gov.pk/. Accessed on Feb. 26, 2014.

The Commission is currently busy developing a ‘vision’ for Pakistan's future: Vision 2025. I find the exercise to be troubling because it fails to explain why Pakistan needs a new vision when the last vision exercise was completed only recently. It was in August 2007 that the Planning Commission, under a different government and leadership, completed a similar vision developing exercise called Vision 2030. What happened to the last Vision? Was it a poor Vision? Did it lack in scope or substance?

The Vision 2030 could be a flawed document that needed replacement. I will buy this argument. But I will require an objective review of the last vision document before I would toss it out. That review, however, is nowhere to be found. What we have are two very similar soundings visions. Vision 2030 expects a 7 per cent to 8 per cent annual growth until 2030. Vision 2025 also foresees a 7 per cent to 8 per cent annual economic growth. Both visions have similar aspirations to be achieved with similar sounding economic recipes.

A network of networks

What Pakistan needs is a network of networks that connects engineers, health professionals, social scientists and others to analyse socio-economic challenges and propose policies to public and private sectors. The networks collectively should monitor all facets of the economy and generate benchmarks for comparison and debate. This network of networks is not intended to replace the Planning Commission. It will be intended to act as a shadow Planning Commission and monitor to decision-making to ensure that the Commission is acting in the best interest if the nation, and not just the ruling classes.

The proposed think tank can have a secretariat based at a university outside of Pakistan. Qatar, Europe, or North America are suited for such a secretariat to ensure that the network’s intellectual freedom is safeguarded. The secretariat would keep the networks aligned and synchronised. At the heart of the proposed organisation will be a digital network to be established in partnership with a leading information management company, such as Google. Google’s technology may include Google sites, Google Apps, Blogger, Scholar, Trends and many more. Google’s existing technology will help launch these networks of hundreds, if not thousands, of like-minded people who are busy researching solutions for problems faced by Pakistan.

By using state-of-the-art in technology, individuals can collaborate in real time to counter the narrative coming out of the Planning Commission, which often misses the mark. Consider that in the past the Commission tried to push forward a proposal to build magnetic levitation trains for the public transit in Karachi. A team of transport experts working in collaboration can expose the flawed logic in the proposed plan and release a document with competing alternatives to the media. It would then be up to the public to believe in the government’s narrative or believe in the advice coming from experts.

Researchers scattered across countries, departments, universities and other institutions can develop these virtual networks around themes of mutual interest. This will mobilise not a few dozen, but a few thousand individuals who can work together to find solutions for Pakistan’s ailing economy and society.