BRICS and Pakistan on August 28, 2023The BRICS summit, scheduled for August 22-24, 2023, was poised to bring about significant transformations, as the alliance, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, explores the prospects of introducing a unified currency and an alternative financial framework. This initiative holds the potential to reshape global dynamics in parallel with Western integration. The […]
Pakistan’s Poverty Crisis on July 24, 2023The latest World Bank report on Pakistan’s poverty plight reads like a dirge, evoking a picture of a stampede for wheat flour, hollow-eyed labourers trapped in an unending cycle of poverty, and opportunistic human traffickers exploiting the vulnerabilities of countless hopeful migrants. This heartrending scenario unfolds throughout our fractured nation, while those in privileged positions […]
Perils of Political Intolerance on May 31, 2023Pakistan has recently been rocked by a wave of political intolerance in the aftermath of a spiralling political crisis threatening to stall the democratic process and economy. Tolerance towards opposing views is a characteristic that sets civilised societies apart from extreme ones. The lack of tolerance has been exploited in the past by political leaders […]
Global Nuclear Disarmament in Disarray on April 17, 2023As we venture deeper into the 21st century, the once-idealistic notion of global nuclear disarmament has become outdated in the face of escalating global volatility. Recent events have only served to exacerbate tensions and intensify the looming threat of nuclear annihilation. Notably, in February 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the suspension of his nation’s […]
Agriculture Productivity Conundrum on April 5, 2023Agriculture in Pakistan is currently in a state of disarray and there is an urgent need for effective measures to revitalise the sector. At the centre of this issue is the alarming decline in Total Factor Productivity (TFP) in the agricultural sector, a critical measure of its efficiency and productivity. TFP considers all inputs of […]
The Need for Consensus-Driven Governance on March 9, 2023In a world where political parties often find themselves at odds with each other over policy decisions, it is not uncommon for opposing leaders to set aside their differences and forge a shared path. On matters relating to public welfare encompassing economic matters, corruption, and security issues particularly, political leaders around the world have demonstrated […]
Fixing the Energy Mix on January 27, 2023The recent global energy supply and demand issue caused by the Russia-Ukraine situation has led to an abrupt shift toward balancing the use of available energy resources. The West has accelerated its shift to renewable energy along with non-renewable sources by focusing on diversifying its energy mix. According to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report, […]
Dimensions of the Budding China-Saudi Arabia Partnership on December 12, 2022Xi Jinping will visit Riyadh for three summits: a China-Gulf (GCC) summit, a China-Arab summit, and a China-Saudi summit. These summits are critical to advance cooperation between China and the Gulf states. The China-Saudi summit is of particular importance because it seems to be heralding new opportunities for Saudi Arabia and China to strengthen their […]
Fallout of the Russia-West Economic War of Attrition on December 8, 2022Renowned historian Adam Tooze has warned that the world faces a “Poly-Crisis”–a perfect storm of impending global financial and socioeconomic crises. The once-comprehensible map of the world order has turned into a tangled mess, giving rise to a series of economic challenges. The global economy was already under stress due to COVID-19, and the Russia-West […]