INDUSTRIES have a significant role in enhancing a country’s economic development. Other than the agriculture sector, there are mainly two key sectors in the national economy; manufacturing and services. The manufacturing sector is the one through which a factory manufactures and develops a range of products.

In contrast, the services sector comprises areas, such as construction, healthcare, technical support, consultancy, and so on.

The problem with Pakistan is that the country has moved to the services sector directly from the agriculture sector, leaving the industrial sector by the roadside. In the 1960s, Pakistan was known as an agricultural economy and our means of production were directly and indirectly dependent on agricultural derivatives. However, in recent times the country is known to have a flourishing services sector.

The problem with such a quick shift towards the services sector is that Pakistan has ignored the backbone of the industry; the manufacturing sector. Manufacturing is not only the backbone of the industrial sector, but is a good source to increase the economic size of a country by producing more and more goods.

The focus on increasing exports means nothing if we are not manufacturing anything worthwhile to export. That explains why we have become dependent on imports. The automobile sector can present a practical example. A major chunk of automobile parts comes via import because there is no industry in Pakistan that can fabricate those parts here.

That is one of the major issues in the national economy, and it is making us dependent on import-based goods that are expensive to afford and takes away a major chunk of our foreign reserves.

To bridge the gap, Pakistan must take steps towards developing its manufacturing sector for products that have a higher demand in the world. In the present situation, Pakistan can achieve that by developing, say, the semiconductor chip industry. Semiconductor chips are in high demand globally. Almost all industries, from those producing cellphones to those dealing in fighter jets, needs these chips to run on. Therefore, the demand for semiconductor chips is increasing by the day.

Countries, such as the United States, China, India and Taiwan, are already working to achieve dominance in chip manufacturing. This demonstrates how significant the chips are in the world today.

To develop the semiconductor chip industry, Pakistan needs infrastructure and expertise in this domain. China can provide expertise to help Pakistan establish this particular industry. By seeking assistance from Chinese companies, Pakistan can surely become a chip manufacturer. It will also help Pakistan and China to strengthen their bilateral relations. Additionally, new sectors will also emerge that will create jobs and we will be able to reduce unemployment.

Not only that, it will also introduce new careers and entrepreneurship in Pakistan. The government must start working towards boosting the overall manu-facturing sector, and producing semi-conductor chips can be the starting point.

Adnan Hussain Solangi
Sehwan sharif

Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2023