Its economy in doldrums, our western neighbour is on the verge of becoming a Chinese colony
There is something intrinsically wrong with Pakistan. Its economy is just sputtering and lagging behind its sibling India, and even Bangladesh. Quite clearly unable to keep pace with the changing times, Pakistan, unlike India and Bangladesh which share the umbilical cord with it, has remained static in terms of the economy. What then ails Pakistan’s economy and why we here in India should be interested in it? As they say, you can choose your friends but not your neighbours. Like it or not, Pakistan is our neighbour and will remain so. A weak, disintegrating, unstable Pakistan would be a far bigger problem for us than it is now. So India has high stakes in the well-being of its western neighbour. Right now, Pakistan is an economic mess. It is borrowing too much and unable to push the stagnant industrial and service sectors. Its debt service ratio is unmanageable and the foreign direct investment (FDI) it receives is just not into the right sectors which can boost its exports. The rate of unemployment is significantly high in Pakistan. It must grow around seven per cent annually to absorb its youth.
The high inflation rate is piling miseries on the poor. The industrial sector stagnates at around 20 per cent. Pakistan’s exports have fallen from 15 per cent of the GDP in 2003 to around 10 per cent currently. The FDI aids growth but that too has fallen from 3.7 per cent of the GDP in 2007 to only one per cent now. It is thus inevitable that the high unemployment rate and poverty are going to push its youth wayward and it may not be good news even for India. What has led to this mess is no mystery either. Pakistan’s ruling elite have mainly been Army personnel who were trained to fight but ended up managing business and making a mess of it, too. High corruption prevalence in contracts and unviable projects led to a situation that borrowed money could not be paid back. Its high dependence on the Chinese products and loans ruined its economy. It is almost at the brink of becoming a Chinese colony. The pandemic has worsened the situation. It is about time the world community took notice of Pakistan’s plight and bailed it out. Else, there is a clear danger that the nuclear nation might implode, sinking its neighbours along. Imran Khan came with a lot of promise but soon found the rut to be so deep that he soon stopped making efforts to clean it. Unless the Pakistan establishment decides to leave its business to the businessmen and restricts it to its barracks, things are going to be difficult for Pakistan.
