Pakistan, a country with immense potential and abundant resources, finds itself grappling with persistent poverty, corruption, and a crumbling infrastructure. While external factors like global economic pressures and geopolitical tensions may have exacerbated its challenges, the core issue lies within the realm of management. Failure of management at every conceivable level has aggravated poverty, hindered development, and turned a potentially viable state into a struggling and now potentially failed nation.
Addressing this management crisis is crucial for Pakistan to unlock its true potential and embark on a path of sustainable development.
Being an elected or unelected executive in charge of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is widely regarded as one of the most challenging jobs in the world. Not because they end up managing a vast and robust economy or have to make decisions with far-reaching consequences, but because they are grossly incapable and utterly unprepared for a job of any consequence, let alone being the leader of a troubled country like Pakistan.
Civilian, elected (or selected) leaders have the added burden of lacking authority and facing constant harassment from the all-powerful and unrelenting establishment - a major and powerful component of which is the Pakistan Army.
Despite the challenges, Pakistan is not a lost cause. At least not yet.
Yes, it's fixable.
The good news is that Pakistan doesn't need a rocket scientist to change things; it just needs someone with an abundance of common sense, an iron will to reform the system, and the ability to withstand the inevitable headwinds.
Easier said than done, most would say.
Today, we will not grapple with the subject of how resources can be better distributed in Pakistan or how the defence budgets need to be controlled. Enough has been written on this, and it's obvious that nothing of this sort will happen anytime soon. Rather, in this article, I would argue that even without an equitable division of the budget, Pakistan can still turn itself around through targeted reforms and better management. What I present below is by no means exhaustive (for that, we will probably need a multi-volume book) but just a snapshot to spotlight the many idiosyncrasies of the prevailing management system in Pakistan.
Economic reforms
I don't want to present an economic reform thesis as I am not an economist. Yes, I am a former banker with an understanding of finance, but I cannot present myself as an economic specialist. In fact, I firmly believe that many economic issues that Pakistan is facing today are on account of bankers moonlighting as economic gurus and trying to manage its economy.
However, just to give a sense of what I think is wrong with Pakistan and the way its economy is managed, I would like to give the following example:
Name me one third-world, debt-ridden country in the world where you don't see bicycles on the streets—in Pakistan, everyone seems to own a motorbike and has no issues fueling it. How is that possible? Obviously, through government-funded subsidies! How is this a viable expenditure for any state, and that too one with a huge foreign currency crisis?
Before people start sending me hate mail, let me explain.
You can literally become an engineer or a doctor after paying pennies, but the unfortunate part is that is exactly what they end up earning once they get these degrees
The only way everyone (even folks at the bottom of the lower-class strata) can afford a motorbike in a poor country like Pakistan is if the petrol is heavily subsidised by the government using public money. Additionally, billions in foreign exchange are spent importing CKD (completely knocked down) kits to assemble these (mostly Chinese) bikes in Pakistan. Again, I am not heartless and would love people to be able to ride motorbikes instead of bicycles, but here I am just making an economic point. The government should not be bearing that burden. Instead, the government should be spending this money on building the public transport infrastructure and heavily subsidising it. Yes I don't hate subsidies – just the misdirected ones. This is the model that works around the world, whether developed or underdeveloped, and should be implemented in Pakistan.
This is just one small example to illustrate what I mean when I say that Pakistan's problem is one of management or the lack of it.
Beyond this, I can just state the obvious: the government needs to be fiscally responsible. They should set targets for cost-cutting within the government. In fact, there should be a powerful minister responsible for auditing each arm of the government and implementing cost-cutting measures in each ministry. This should be part of their KPIs (Key Performance Indicators), with set annual targets for the ministries and the minister responsible for cost-cutting.
We have one of the weakest currencies in the world—let’s take advantage of it and focus on exports. Provide industrialists with specialised schemes for long-term fixed loans and currency hedge options to import machinery and expand export capacity. Have central bank/Ministry of Finance/Industries oversight and punitive measures for anyone exploiting the system.
I could go on and on, but I think readers are getting the idea of where this is going.
Education reforms
Pakistan is in desperate need of educational reforms, and these reforms need to happen now.
After the 18th Amendment, education was devolved as a provincial subject, and it is the duty of the provinces to sit up and take notice of a system that is doing nothing for the students or the country. Our curriculum is outdated, and the teaching methodology is self-defeating. The biggest difference between students in Pakistan and those abroad is their ability to think freely, ask questions, and disagree with logic.
Pakistan is one of the few countries in the world that offers free, specialised education to the masses. You can literally become an engineer or a doctor after paying pennies, but the unfortunate part is that is exactly what they end up earning once they get these degrees. Let us take doctors, for example; the government spends billions of rupees on these medical graduates and then has no use for them. It's not as if we have an oversupply of doctors, but the government simply lacks any hospital infrastructure to accommodate all the graduates it produces. They either end up grappling with the police on the streets of Lahore, asking for permanent jobs, or setting up poorly paid private clinics. The lucky few migrate abroad, pass international exams, and end up living and working outside Pakistan, mostly in Western countries. The situation for engineers is even worse.
The government or the private sector has simply no capacity to accommodate all the graduates coming out of these subsidised government-run colleges, and they either end up working for peanuts or a decent percentage simply migrate to economies ever in need of their technical skills. Unfortunately, doctors and engineers migrating to the West do not contribute to remittances the same way as Pakistanis living and working in the Middle East. So, tell me, how does subsidising specialised education help the country or its people? Aren't we subsidising education for rich Western countries? And that, at best, is ironic. Can't this money be better used to build health infrastructure or invest in the crumbling primary and secondary schools? Or even propping up technical schools with trade-based curricula?
Judicial reforms
Here, let's just talk about the lower courts, where the masses at large face unparalleled hardships. From family law to property disputes, years and sometimes decades are spent in getting judgments, while the resultant mental and financial trauma that litigants face is unbelievable.
How can this be fixed?
Common sense laws and more judges! I can write a whole thesis on simple steps which any government can take with basic legislation that can impact the lives of millions of litigants who get molested by the system year after year.
Please check the prices of produce at the farms and ask the farmers at what rate do they sell to middlemen, and then check the produce prices at the retail/wholesale level. You will find that there is at least a 500% increase in price
While we are at it, let's also take a long, hard look at the quality of lawyers which our country produces. In many cases, they are more hooligans than lawyers. Again, there is a need to revise the curriculum, make admissions more difficult, and create a crop that actually knows the law and works per a discipline. This, again, would require basic legislation.
How hard is this to understand?
Labour reforms
Labour is our most profitable export. We spend nothing to produce it, and it brings in billions in foreign exchange. Imagine if we spent some money on training these hard-working men and women and then exported this value-added product—the inward remittances could easily double.
I don't even want to touch upon the quality of life of the labourers working in Pakistan. The conditions are miserable, and a whole book can be written on the need to fix this.
The simple answer is: legislation and enforcement.
Mismanagement of the agricultural sector
Pakistan is an agricultural country and is endowed with fertile agricultural land and abundant water resources. However, mismanagement of these assets has severely undermined the country's economic stability and growth. For instance, the agricultural sector, which employs a significant portion of the population, suffers from outdated practices, inadequate irrigation systems, and a lack of investment in modern technology. This has resulted in low crop yields, food insecurity, and rural poverty.
Can anyone explain how a country like Pakistan has food inflation? Please check the prices of produce at the farms and ask the farmers at what rate do they sell to middlemen, and then check the produce prices at the retail/wholesale level. You will find that there is at least a 500% increase in price. If this is not mismanagement, then what is?
Government institutions managing resources and implementing policies often fall short due to patronage politics and vested interests
The agriculture ministry can play a pivotal role in redefining the agricultural sector in this country, but instead, the most incompetent minister gets assigned to the role. The less said, the better.
Infrastructure decay
The state of Pakistan's infrastructure is a testament to decades of mismanagement and neglect. Roads, bridges, and public transportation systems are in disrepair, leading to inefficiencies and increased costs for businesses and individuals.
The energy sector, plagued by chronic power shortages and an unreliable grid, further hampers industrial growth and everyday life.
A glaring example of infrastructure mismanagement is the country's water distribution system. Despite having one of the world's largest irrigation networks, Pakistan faces severe water scarcity. This paradox arises from outdated infrastructure, inefficient water use, and a lack of effective management.
Urban areas, in particular, suffer from inadequate water supply and poor sanitation, contributing to health crises and reduced quality of life.
Governance and corruption
At the heart of Pakistan's management problem is a crisis of governance. Corruption, bureaucratic inefficiency, and a lack of accountability have eroded public trust and stymied progress. Government institutions managing resources and implementing policies often fall short due to patronage politics and vested interests.
Corruption siphons off funds meant for development projects, leaving essential infrastructure incomplete or substandard. Bureaucratic inefficiency further compounds the issue, with delays and red tape hindering project execution and service delivery. The lack of accountability mechanisms allows mismanagement to persist unchecked, perpetuating a cycle of underperformance and public disillusionment.
Conclusion
I am not naïve to believe that it's easy to fix Pakistan's problems, but I only wanted to make a case that it's indeed fixable. All it needs is the will. Pakistan's challenges are formidable, but they are not insurmountable. At the core of these issues lies a management problem that, if addressed, can unlock the country's potential and pave the way for a prosperous future.
However, so far there is no hope in sight.