The Inequality Quagmire — more fear and less hope (Part 2) on April 25, 2021There are some significant facts from the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement Survey of 2018-19 which reveal that overall in Pakistan, 28 percent of the households own a one-room house, 23 percent of the households use wood/bamboo for the material of the roof, and 45 percent of the households use wood/sticks as fuel used […]
A contradiction between consumerism and ecological credit crunch (Part 2) on December 20, 2020Apart from this – SDG 12 focuses on sustainable practices related to food also. In this context, target 12.3 aims to halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses, by 2030. The data on its indicators for indexes of […]
A contradiction between consumerism and ecological credit crunch (Part 1) on December 19, 2020The advent of the steam engine and the industrial revolution led to an unprecedented competing interest within nations, where more production meant more welfare. It is no surprise that we are living in an era of consumerism where more is less. Our existing development paradigm faces the threats of land degradation, water scarcity, food insecurity, […]
The past, present and future of gender-based victimization (PartII) on November 7, 2020Similarly, target 5.b seeks to ‘enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications technology, to promote the empowerment of women’. In this regard, the Pakistan Social and Living Standard Measurement Survey (2018-19) reported that in juxtaposition to the 65 percent of the male population that owns a mobile phone – only 26 […]
The past, present and future of gender-based victimization (Part 1) on November 5, 2020Gender inequality issues are structural in nature. It would not be wrong to say that women suffer from time poverty. What starts from the preference of a son leads to a cycle of victimization throughout a woman’s life. Some of the atrocities women face include honor-killings, rape, abductions, acid attacks, domestic abuse, harassment, dowry and […]
A land where wealth buys health (Part II) on October 18, 2020In this predicament, mental health should not be sidelined. When it comes to suicide rate, target 3.4 deals with reducing one third of premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment, and promotes mental health and well-being. In this regard, if we consider indicator, 3.4.2 – then Pakistan had a suicide mortality rate of […]
Can there be a panacea until the taps turn dry? on September 19, 2020Experts believe that all Pakistanis, irrespective of where they reside are vulnerable to water scarcity. This issue can be attributed to a plethora of reasons. Our agrarian economy uses up a great amount of surface water. Just as water sustains life, wasting it threatens life. Unfortunately, we do not have a good nexus between technology […]
Lost Cities with a Myriad of Unfulfilled Dreams (part II) on September 7, 2020Target 11.2 commits to ‘provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all by 2030, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport, with special attention to the needs of those in vulnerable situations, women, children, persons with disabilities and older persons’. According to the World Bank, there should be a 100-seater […]
The Three ‘I’s’ of economic growth: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (part I) on August 6, 2020Grappling with a battle against a virus, the economy of Pakistan is eclipsed with a conjunctural moment where it needs a revamping of the paradigm of policies of economic growth. This statement can be supported by the fact that our economy has not been able to sustain this multivariate shock – in the form of […]
A lacuna in the accomplishment of ‘SDG 2: Zero Hunger’ on August 4, 2020Fighting an invisible enemy has sidelined many of our national issues. With the world’s fifth largest population and more than 87 million children under the age of 18 – the glamorous political facade and the power play have not resulted in much factual realizations of no hunger and free education fustians – except for written […]