Still a long way to go

SPEAKING at the concluding session of the envoys conference last Thursday President Gen. Pervez Musharraf claimed that Pakistan was fast becoming a success story offering new opportunities for investment. Indeed, at the moment the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has in its kitty more than $11 billion. Banks are awash with liquidity and interest rates have come down to seven to eight per cent. The rate of inflation has remained low at four to five per cent over the last three years. So, by and large, the country has achieved a degree of macroeconomic stability. But to call this a success story would be an overstatement of fact. In the first place, one cannot but note the significant contribution made by the 9/11-related developments, mostly non-repeatable, to the realization of the current level of the economic turnaround and stability in the country. Secondly, the downside of the so-called success story is the further pauperization of large segments of the population. This is largely the result of the tight leash on public sector expenditure that the government was obliged to keep under IMF conditionalities over the last three years. It may have enabled Islamabad to keep to the budgetary deficit targets fixed by the Fund, but in the process it has had the effect of deepening and widening the problem of poverty and destitution in the country. It has also had a dampening effect on domestic private investment because as past experience shows, private investors in Pakistan often take their cue from the level of dynamism characterizing the public sector of the economy.

Understandably, too, foreign investment continues to be shy because despite our joining the global war on terrorism, we have not been able to improve the domestic law and order situation. We are still very deficient in essential infrastructure and skilled manpower needed to attract long-term investments. Besides, corruption at various levels in the government continues to be a deterring factor. As a result, in the last three years, no new company was floated on our stock exchanges. The Karachi Stock Exchange has broken all past records of investment, making it even more obvious that while the investors consider Pakistan a good place to invest their money, they do not feel comfortable with the idea of investing here on a long-term basis.

The overall international image of Pakistan is that of a military-dominated, crime and terrorism-ridden country engaged in ‘incomprehensible’ conflicts with its neighbours. It is this image that needs to be corrected by taking meaningful policy decisions at the highest level. Mere promises and assurances would not do. It is only after these have been turned into credible realities that our foreign-based envoys would be able to project Pakistan as a good market for investment. And while we are doing this, we must send ambassadors with a commercial bent of mind to the US, Europe and Japan. Because of our role in the war against terrorism we are very much in the good books of the decision makers in these countries. This advantage should be made to work for our economic interest. Meanwhile, we do need to have ambassadors who understand economy, especially commerce, to promote our economic interests in the global marketplace. If we can find them in the foreign service so much the better. If not, let us recruit such persons from the private sector. Some of the young entrepreneurs in this country have had their schooling in the best business schools in the West. Let us consider engaging their services to promote our economic and commercial interests worldwide.

Karachi’s rain blight

THE virtual collapse of Karachi’s civic infrastructure as a result of the recent rain is a shuddering thought. The worst drubbing has been borne by roads, bridges and the sewerage system. The flooding of the streets showed that the sewerage system was not being maintained well, and in many areas it had become almost obsolete. In many cases, roads remained under water for days after the rain had ceased. On Monday, which saw the season’s heaviest downpour, all of Karachi’s arterial roads — Sharea Faisal, M.A. Jinnah Road, University Road, Stadium Road, Korangi Road, and the entire Saddar-Empress Market area experienced nightmarish traffic jams because the standing water, in some cases knee-deep, had made driving impossible. As the water receded, one was stunned by the extent of the damage roads had suffered. The shoddy nature of work done by contractors was evident from the battered condition of roads and flyovers built recently. Some low-lying areas remained under water for days, and no arrangements were at hand to drain the water out by suction pumps before the sewerage system could be recommissioned.

One does not know where the money will come from for repairing the damaged roads and for recommissioning the sewerage system. The truth is Karachi needs a new sewerage system to cope with the vastly increased population. This, together with repairs of the arteries and the inner-city road network, should cost a fortune. Given the state of the city government’s finances, it would be futile to expect it to initiate repair and recarpeting of roads and bridges on the needed scale. Perhaps, the city district government could float bonds to raise money. But one doubts if there will be many takers. The alternative is for the federal government to come to the rescue of Karachi. Without substantial federal grants, it would be impossible to carry out these pressing restorative tasks speedily enough.

A touching episode

THERE is a lesson to learn from the successful heart surgery that Noor Fatima, the two-and-a-half year-old Pakistani child, underwent in a Bangalore hospital — which is that good neighbourly relations between India and Pakistan can become a reality if we put our hearts in the right place. Noor’s parents were simply overwhelmed by the goodwill and hospitality shown to them during their stay in India by their hosts, the hospital, the Karnataka government and the people in general. Noor has brought back with her three suitcases full of gifts and her parents a 25kg box containing letters and cards of good wishes that were sent to them by ordinary Indians. The girl’s father, together with the Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital in Bangalore, also set up a Dosti Fund to help treat other children from Pakistan who may need advanced heart surgery not available back home. The Karnataka state government and a number of anonymous Indian philanthropists have contributed generously to the fund 80 per cent of whose proceeds are meant for the treatment of Pakistani children and 20 per cent for the Indian.

Earlier in March this year, Dr Devi Shetty, the cardiologist in charge of the Bangalore hospital, had written a letter to this newspaper offering his services free of charge to all Pakistani children who may require advanced cardiac surgery but may not have the resources to travel to Europe or America for the purpose. The noble gesture on the part of the doctor came at a time when relations between India and Pakistan were at their lowest ebb. Just goes to show that no amount of bad blood created by politicians on both sides can dampen the human concern and friendliness that those with a heart among the people in the two countries have for one another. Our politicians would do well to learn from such expressions of friendship and good-neighbourliness.