Essay ''Economy of Pakistan'', Best Essay for CSS/CA/AC/CA/PMT Aspirants

 

Economy of Pakistan

 Outline

1: Introduction 

2: Overview 

3: Challenges to Pakistan's economy 

(a) We consume more and save less 

(b) Import more and export less

(c) The government spends more than it earns 

(d) Our share is shrinking 

(e) We badly lag in social indicators 

(f)  Facing energy and water shortages 

(g) Cost of doing business is high 

(h) Implementation is weak 

(i)  Uncertainty due to lack of continuity 

(j)  Political stability law and orders 

4: Remedies to improve economy 

(a) Change in national mindset 

(b) Building of human capital 

(c) Use of technology 

(d) Young labor force 

(e) Governance

Introduction 

Today Pakistan is facing money challenges some problems are very complex in
 nature and will take many years to overcome and a few problems and challenges are due to the mistakes of powerhouses that adversely affect social socioeconomic status of our country. That is why since the birth of Pakistan the poor economy has remained a chore challenge for it. The rising inflation shrinking, GDP, increasing unemployment and diminishing export levels are the major obstacles that restrict the ability of Pakistan to have a flourishing and well-developed economy. According to the economic survey of Pakistan the rate of inflation grew to 47% GDP growth rate went up to 4.71% and the unemployment rate declined to 5.9% while the rate of interest was the same. 

In 1947, Pakistan had 30 million people with a per capita income of $100. Agriculture was the major source as all the industries were in India. It was difficult to feed such a large population. Their four Pakistan started importing from the USA. Today with 170 million people per capita income is $1000. Pakistan is the third largest exporter of rice in the world. It is produced in grains for the needs of people, and 3 million tons of rice is exported every year. Moreover, Pakistan is one of the five major textile-producing countries. So if we see all this our agriculture production is being reduced and now only 20%. 

Therefore, out of the total national income agriculture contribution is only 20% but instead of being deficient in food production we are surplus. Productivity will only happen if we use same land same land but produce more. Agriculture does not mean crops only it includes dairy products, meat, livestock, etc. We are not using our sources rightly. The agriculture rate in the USA is 2.5% but they feed 300 million people and also export which is left. Therefore it is important to understand when it is said that agriculture is more contributing it is the product activity of agriculture rather than the share in GDP. It is not satisfying to see the present condition of Pakistan. A country like Vietnam has now overtaken us which was once destroyed by war. If we talk about India they were way behind us 10 years ago but now they are far away from us. 

 Challenges to Pakistan's economy

The people of Pakistan spend more and save less. 14 pc is saved by an average Pakistani from their monthly salary. While the rich ones save money in homes instead of the banks. If we start saving more then we can handle this problem. Pakistan's government takes away 20% of national income as 80% is left in the private sector and 12% for defense, debt servicing, development on education, health, etc. The country's budget creates a gap between expenditures and revenues. A message amount of 1348.4 billion is spent on paying the country's interest on domestic and foreign borrowing. The revenue generated is only 15% of GDP at best and in the worst days is 12 to 13% which means our average text paid is only 9 paisa and 91 paisa remain with the individual. The financing provided by the state of Pakistan is very dangerous as it creates inflation. 

In 1990 Pakistan's share was 0.2% and after 20 years it has come down to 0.12%. The World is progressing a lot in world trade. India has double its shares while Pakistan is going the other way and that is why the export and import imbalance is increasing. Pakistan is stuck with only a few commodities, leather, textile, rice, sports, and surgical goods. We are not introducing demanding products for the whole world. We are only trading with a few countries.

One of the most glaring weaknesses of Pakistan is infant mortality, fertility rates, in access to water supply has social indicators which are more comparable to Africa. Tajikistan which is a poor country has a better literacy rate than Pakistan. Another challenge we are facing is the shortage of water and energy. Pakistan is producing sufficient electricity but not using it wisely. According to a report, people are paid 55% of bills for those who are stealing electricity. The government of Pakistan is paying 200 billion rupees every year as a subsides for electricity. We are facing disadvantages as there is an outage of electricity, therefore, the industries are not able to complete the orders. Due to global warming glaciers in the Himalayas are melting and in the future, we are going to have difficulties. The increase and global warming are resulting in more floods, hurricane hurricanes, and, tornadoes.

Pakistan has slipped three places on the World Banks Ease of Doing Business in the Index 2017 and is now ranked 147 among 190 denting the image of Pakistan. The index gives hints about the progress of any country and we are troubled with this fact. We are enable to pay taxes as well. Lack of coordination among government agencies is costing us more. We are taking loans from IMF on high interest which is very destructive. If we compare the present policies of government for education, economic, and health crises with 40-year-old policies we see no such difference. Only orders are given no implementation is done which is weakening us. Every state can progress if every hiring is done with honesty. But dishonesty and nepotism are engulfing us. It is quite strange that no government has completed its 5 years of governance. There is no continuity. If a country gets rid of its image of political instability and poor law and order situation. The sooner its economic condition will stabilize.

Solutions to improve the economy

How we can overcome this problem and improve our economy? A lot has been written and talked about but I will focus on only a few action points. 

As a nation we have a very negative mindset first we have to change our mindset. Instead of individual benefits, we should focus on overall benefits. Everyone should be honest with his work and do it with Zeal. There are no shortcuts in such important issues media is just mudding the water with its sensational headlines and inviting so-called people who have a negative mindset. 

Private schools, government schools, NGOs, public sectors, and community in short the whole Nation and respective institutes should make sure that everyone goes to school and gets an education. If you don't apply the knowledge and don't use the skills to solve the issues then it will be of no use. We have to guide our young youth and guide them to opt for careers according to their interest. The technology is spreading like fire who thought 10 years ago that we would have access to mobile phones and the internet in villages now over 93 million Pakistanis have cell phones. This is helping us in every way of life but we must use it wisely. 

Young labor force

The young labor force will help us to progress more. In the upcoming years, European countries will face a decrease in young population but countries like India and Pakistan will have an increase in young youth. If they guide and give opportunities to the young youth it will be beneficial. We just generate skillful youth and it will surprise the whole world. If you want to make the economy progressive we have to utilize the whole provinces and cities. One cannot handle the whole Nation while sitting in any particular city like Karachi, Islamabad, Peshawar, or Lahore. We have to work on every City then we can progress in a better way.