Some 20 million Pakistani children, including an estimated 7.3 million of primary school age, today do not have access to education. Aside from the by-products of terrorism and corruption, a lack of information about the benefits of education has also added to the sorry state of Pakistan’s education system.
Pakistan’s recent elections were the first civilian transfer of power in the country’s troubled history. While it did take place amidst horrific violence, increasing poverty and pervasive corruption, it also held a promise of a very different future. Pakistan is likely to be more focused on economic development in the future, thanks to the transformative campaign of Imran Khan and his Tehrik-e-Insat (PTI) party. That, in turn, has substantial implications over U.S. and Chinese interests in South Asia.
Iranian officials have agreed to loan Pakistan $500 million to complete a controversial cross-border pipeline project that can transport over 21.5 million cubic metres of gas daily to their neighbours by 2014, reported Pakistani newspaper Express Tribune on Tuesday, ahead of president Asif Ali Zardari’s visit to Tehran later this week.
Pakistan’s nuclear program is a source of national pride and identity. But with concerns growing over the security of its nuclear weapons – especially the threat of theft by terrorists – can Pakistan still maintain the growth of its nuclear program, without provoking action from the U.S. and, most notably, India?
For years, the Indus River has brought water (and life) to both India and Pakistan. But today, the river now stands at the centre of a water conflict between the two South Asian neighbours, which threatens to escalate into violence. Is a water war between India and Pakistan imminent, and what is China’s role in the whole thing?
A peaceful and stable Pakistan is integral to Western efforts to pacify Afghanistan, but Islamabad’s obsessions with its giant eastern neighbour, India, may render such issues moot.
Pakistan faces a desperate need for more energy. As such, officials are now pinning their hopes on an underground coal gasification project that they hope will be able to power the country for the next 30 years. But will the country’s lack of knowledge and expertise, coupled with inept crony management, threaten to snuff out their latest efforts?
Diplomatic tensions between the US and Pakistan are expected to reach an all-time high after a US Congressional Panel decided to freeze $700 million in aid to the Pakistani government, while Pakistan has threatened to charge “millions of dollars” in taxes to NATO trucks and tankers within the country.
The new US restrictions on aid to Pakistan was part of a $662 billion defence bill agreed by both House and Senate negotiators on Monday night, and is expected to be passed later this week.
Much of Pakistan’s capital city Islamabad looks like a rich Los Angeles suburb.
Shiny sport utility vehicles purr down gated driveways. Elegant multistory homes are tended by servants.
Laundry is never hung out to dry.
But behind the opulence lurks a troubling fact.
Very few of these households pay income tax.
Pakistan is a Lower income economies coming under the South Asian region as to the classification made by the World Bank on the basis of income and region for the year 2006.
Pakistan is an agricultural based economy by employing more than 50 % of the country’s labor force and constitutes more than 25% of the GDP. The industrial sector is also performing better in the recent years.
