[mobasherzia]

A WORD TO THE WISE: INDUSTRIALIZE

Having moved to the U.S. when I was a mere babe of sixteen in 1967, I am not too much in tune with the politics "over there" in Pakistan, the land of the pure. But I do keep in touch in a general way with the "happenings" back home. I throw this out as an apology for any and all naivette that the more perceptive political commentators will detect in the sincere thoughts that follow.

I believe that we, the Pakistanis, are bright, smart and hard-working people. Our abilities shine when they are given the opportunity to shine. Too bad, such opportunities are provided in a foreign land and not in our native land. So what is the solution? Good Golly Miss Molly, if someone had the answer, he or she would have at the very least, won the Nobel Prize for "problem-solving".

As a first step, I would take the approach of gaining insight from the experience of other nations, like South Korea or Singapore or Turkey, who have fared much better than us. The key to formulating a solution, I would have to say, is Industrialization: That has the potential to take care of ethnic divides, over-population, in-law (and out-law) problems, poverty, corruption, arranged marriage woes, moulvis, etc., etc. United States was at the turn of the century, where Pakistan is at right now. If Pakistanis are provided the right "environment" in which to grow, they will perform miracles - no idle boast once you consider what so many of us have achieved in foreign lands.

But in addition to industrialization, we need to weed out some entrenched and tangled webs we have woven. For starters we should swallow the bitter pill on Kashmere. We must let Kashmeris fight for their own independence or decide whether they want to join India or Pakistan.

Not only will it gain goodwill worldwide, it will also free resources for industrialization. And other countries will flock to Pakistan for investment into the infrastructure. The leader who shows this kind of vision (foregoing Kashmere for the sake of Pakistan's future) will be The Times' Person of the Year, in addition to winning the Nobel Peace Prize.

He or she will alas, also be a martyr but this effort would purchase him/her a non-stop flight to Heaven, no questions asked by the Lord above (similar to Anwar Sadaat and Menachem Begin?!).

Industrialization. In my not so humble opinion, that's the ticket for Pakistan to flourish in the new millenium.

 

[WAQAS]

[*Its Me*]

We are striving for our survival

 

[*Its Me*]

Well i differ with you in certain respects that

Industrialization might be a way out at advanced stage but currently we have been pushed back once again to preliminary stages of development.

Pakistan is an agricultural land, over 38% of our GDP growth is dependant upon revenues from agrerain sector and more than half of our exports are agricultural, and that too in raw form, while developed countries exports are finished goods.

if u talk about korea and other countries they had no other option but to euip them with better technology for their survival.

here in Pak 70% people live in villages with no primary education availavble to them, if we all of a sudden industralize ourseleves even that would mean educating our people frist, bringing in latest technology in country and training people to use it, and we all our well aware of the fact that we don't have that much resources and even if we start today providing education to our least developed sector, that would mean another 1o or 20 years of efforts...How many youth make it to university education in Pakistan and how many of them make use of their education and how many of them flee to foreign countries in pursuit of better career..?

well we can pave our way to prosperity only if we strengthn our agrerain sector by modernizing it and providing them better means to increase yeild and then after establishing solid roots in agriculture, making our exports stable, eliminating deficit in our BOP and inviting investors to build relavent industries.

if you look at china, communes also made their way to industrialization by making agricultral reforms, and still their govt. has very strict policy regarding inhibiting urbanization.

In our country, due to mercy of captialism our govt. as expected jumped to industrializtion..started Privatization which didn't only make our national wealth go into foregin hands but due to recent crisis capital drain is also occuring. Our villages are deprived of basic necessities of life and they have resoted to urabnization, and it all has created a mess.

we being an agricultural economy are trying to make progress through industrial means. But we forget that that to indiustrialize our economy we need to educate our labour which earns minimum of 6000 per month.

we indeed our land of oppertunites for we have cheap labour but we are too entrapped by war on terror gaga that we are wasting so many golden oppertunites and making our economy suffer.

 

[!~*AdOrAbLe*~!]

.....

 

[pkmuslim]

The bring peace and stability in Pakistan, the govt. has to end pro-American policies. We need brave and bold leadership.