Pakistan, right after its inception in 1947, embarked on an oil and gas exploration journey, as it had inherited a negligible oil and gas infrastructure from the British. The journey was arduous, but slowly and gradually the efforts bore a productive yield, when the hunt for energy resources started to pay huge dividends. Initially, exploration efforts in 1950s focused on the Potwar Plateau and Indus Valley, leading to the first oil discovery at Dhullian (1952) and first gas discovery at Khaur (1956). Significant discoveries followed in the 1960s, including the Rawalpindi-Kallar Kahar gas field. The 1970s saw offshore drilling commence…
Author: Ayaz Ali Kolachi
Pakistan’s banking sector needs urgent overhauling; can tackle high NPLs and enhance financial inclusion Adopting Singapore’s liquidity framework and Canada’s risk management can boost Pakistan’s banking resilience and inclusivity The banking sector in any country is its spine, allowing it the needed financial mobility and resilience to cope with challenges of all kinds. It’s the epicenter of the country’s upward and downward financial mobility. In addition to it, a robust banking system is the sign of a thronging financial vista,where the circulation of money in different sectors demonstrates people’s trust in their financial management system that keeps countries breathing in…
Unpredictable weather patterns and rising temperatures threaten crop yields and water resources Adopting methods like Zero Budget Natural Farming and Agroecology could improve resilience and productivity Pakistan’s economic sector, which heavily banks upon agriculture is in the eye of a serious storm related to changing environmental patterns, which threaten to disrupt the normalcy of the agricultural produce. The erratic changes in weather patterns will give birth to multifaceted challenges, which Pakistan may find impossible to withstand, considering that our resources wouldn’t conventionally allow us to diversify quickly enough to defeat this leviathan of global warming. The signs of the meltdown…
Investments in education and entrepreneurship can capitalise on youth, contrasted with the risks of neglect and poor job placements Pakistan is blessed with many riches, but having over 60 percent of its population, forming a youth bulge in itself is an opulence, provided it’s judiciously used. Unfortunately, Pakistan finds itself ensnared in a political and economic labyrinth over and over again. The country’s political leadership is immersed in its short-sighted power struggles, which has compromised utilising Pakistan’s best asset — the youth in its right place. Pakistan’s demographic landscape is characterised by a youthful population, with over 67 percent of…
Pakistan is mired in a heated debate on privatisation that’s underway It isn’t going to produce the desired yield, as people generally tend to look at it as a double-edged sword: they know, the government isn’t doing enough and they fully know that privatisation isn’t the panacea they were looking for. People’s trust in private hands taking charge in different sectors is also diminished by basket cases like PTCL, KESC and Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), which didn’t happen after the deal was done. Another worst case is that of ‘Take or Pay’ contracts between Government of Pakistan and IPPs (Independent…
Need to prioritise sustainable energy solutions, take strategic reforms for long-term growth and stability Some considerations and potential steps county’s could take to address its energy crisis The concept of energy security was introduced in the early 2000s to cater to the needs of a dynamic, industrial world that required uninterrupted power supply, and a secure energy paradigm to be able to flourish and some of the key components involved in the theory are diversification of energy resources; improving energy efficiency; enhancing energy infrastructure and promotion of energy conservation. However, none of these policy prongs seemed to have engaged Pakistan’s…
A common man’s perspective on the budget for the fiscal year 2024-25 The budget speech delivered by the Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Muhammad Aurangzeb, was received with cautious optimism and a perennial sense of pessimism among the concerned quarters. An overall view of the budget reveals that the message conveyed is simple: Not much is going to change this year either. The total outlay of the budget is a significant Rs18.9 trillion. Tax revenues placed at Rs7.2 trillion do not inspire confidence. A fiscal deficit of Rs1.8 trillion means that many sectors, including health and education, will remain…
Need to address fundamental issues in GDP, inflation and structural reforms in fixing Pakistan’s economic woes The economic challenges that Pakistan has to contend with are part of simple economic theories. There is nothing quixotic or cryptic to them. The country looks trapped in an eternal economic spin. At least that’s what the figures loudly say. Additionally, they are interconnected with fundamental management of the economy, which have been badly messed up in Pakistan. Former prime minister Shahid Khan Abbasi recently spotlighted yawning flaws in our economic approach noting that “approaching the IMF to get a bailout package is in…