💼 Economy & Sustainable Livelihoods
Naseer Memon
Those who pay for climate change
August 9, 2026
Descending from an 8,611-metres peak at the majestic K2 to the tidal mudflats of the Arabian Sea, Pakistan’s landscape encompasses a range of climatic zones over a straight-line distance of about 1,550 kilometres. This fascinating topography hosts diverse ecosystems comprising snow-packed mountain peaks, forests, plateaus, hills, deserts, sprawling plains, mighty rivers, hill torrents, islands and coastline............
The shrinking pie
August 2, 2026
Distribution of financial resources between federal and provincial governments is in the spotlight again. At the time of the 2026 budget approval, this debate was at the centre of political talk shows. In the end, the federal government convinced the provinces to contribute Rs 1,200 billion to meet “strategic needs.” The provinces slashed their annual development plans significantly to create cushion for their...........
Food for thought
May 5, 2026
Discussions have finally started in earnest on the 11th National Finance Commission Award. Distribution of financial resources through NFC awards has always been an inflammatory subject in Pakistan. The provinces are, understandably, always jostling for a bigger share than can be easily conceded by the other stake-holder. The provincial governments point out that public service delivery is primarily their responsibility..............
Conserving land for future
April 19, 2026
Land is a primary resource for growing grains. Rapid degradation of land mass worldwide is a looming threat to food security. According to United Nations Environment Programme about 70 percent of dry land used for agriculture worldwide has been degraded. Desertification and land degradation have afflicted almost 30 percent of land area of the world and one-sixth of the world’s population. The impact is more severe in Asia..............
Coastal development
February 22, 2026
The federal government has once again shown interest in starting mega-projects along the Sindh coastline. Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry has announced an ambitious plan to transform the Ziarat Hasan Shah Island into a premier eco-tourism and lifestyle destination.
The plan envisages to make the island a flagship destination for eco-tourism, sports tourism and lifestyle
...........
Sharing a pie
January 11, 2026
Discussions have finally started in earnest on the 11th National Finance Commission Award. Distribution of financial resources through NFC awards has always been an inflammatory subject in Pakistan. The provinces are, understandably, always jostling for a bigger share than can be easily conceded by the other stake-holder. The provincial governments point out that public service delivery is primarily their responsibility..............
Credibility deficit
April 21, 2025
CONFLICT over the waters of the Indus is more than a century old.
British-era documents provide evidence that Sindh — when it was governed by Bombay — protested against the waters’ upstream diversion through a series of projects in the Punjab. The Bombay administration always viewed upstream diversion as detrimental to Sindh’s share, and argued against the construction of the Thal andHaveli canals in the 1920s..............
Growing grievances
April 20, 2025
On April 17, the Punjab government announced a major support package for farmers.
The announcement followed protest demonstrations by farmers in the Punjab and Sindh. Voices against new canals in Indus River system and development of new command areas for corporate farming have transcended the provincial boundaries. Several political parties have started organising protests in support of the farming...........
Development scenario in Sindh
April 10, 2006
A RECENTLY released report of the World Bank, “Securing Sindh’s future: challenges ahead” has revealed startling facts about the state of governance and socio-economic well-being in the province, particularly in the rural areas. The document is littered with hard facts of under-development in the province.
The overall governance seems to be the key factor responsible for socio-economic degradation. A province which has been contributing enormously to the national economy is suffering from negativegrowth in almost every sector..............
Tackling unemployment in rural Sindh
July 9, 2017
The government of Sindh has announced creating approx 50,000 new jobs in the next financial year. The budgetary announcement was greeted with cheers by many who still believe that a public sector job is the dream destination in one’s life.
Youth in the rural Sindh particularly have great enchantment with public sector jobs. Students grow with prayers of getting a government job after acquiring a graduation degree. Rural areas where agriculture is a key driver of economy and landlords are seen as the most powerful .............
Discretionary development
June 25, 2017
The thick budget documents often go untouched by most of the parliamentarians on either side of the aisles. Ritualistic narratives and perfunctory comments are liberally exchanged often without trying to decipher the complex digits cooked up by seasoned bureaucrats. Almost every year certain customary phrases are used e.g. tax free budget, pro-people budget, pro-poor budget and anti-people budget.
Media avidly covers all the contentious comments and cacophony unleashed during the post-budget discussions. The post-.............
Dimensions of poverty
July 24, 2016
The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) have released a report "Multidimensional Poverty in Pakistan" which depicts a grim picture of social well-being in the country.
The concept of poverty has evolved over time. As knowledge about the complexity of human societies is growing, poverty has found new meanings and coping strategies. Starting from the more banal concepts of nature’s curse, inadequate calorie intake and lack of.............
The cess mess
May 31, 2015
The federal government steamrollered all the dissent in the parliament and embarked upon another contentious piece of legislation with the connivance of pseudo opposition party PPP. Bereft of any sign of altruism, the PML-N government fortified anti-Punjab sentiment by imposing Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) against the will of smaller provinces.
The chief ministers of Sindh and KP provinces have already deprecated the cess which is aimed at benefitting Punjab at the expense of other provinces. The controversial law was earlier levied by the PPP government in 2011 by enacting the.............
Battle for award begins
May 3, 2015
The finance ministry notified and convened belated meeting of the 8th National Finance Commission (NFC) to develop a mechanism for distribution of resources between federal government and the provinces for the next five years.
Resource distribution in a federation is a complex and often contentious affair. Relations between provinces and centre have never been cordial in Pakistan. The three smaller provinces have a deep-seated discontent, the roots of which can be traced to over-centralised policies adopted since the formative years of the country. A tight-fisted centre has been cavalierly devouring the resources of smaller provinces..............
Unemployment in rural Sindh
May 5, 2008
Unemployment in rural areas is the most daunting challenge being faced by the new Sindh government. The rural areas are fast losing their agriculture-based employment potential due to persistent shortage of water and land degradation. Almost 14 million people in rural Sindh directly depend on agriculture as their major source of livelihood.
However, this source of livelihood and employment is under severe pressure due to variety of reasons. Drought, faulty water distribution mechanism, poor management of water resources, land degradation, lack of research and inept market .............
Global capital, development and livelihood of the poor
December 24, 2007
While investment avenues in the developed world are almost saturated, global capital is now exploring new markets. The developing world offers fertile grounds for international investors.
The developing world has enormous natural resources which largely remain unexploited due to lack of technology, capital and human resource. The law enforcement is weak and governments are inefficient and corrupt.
The laws including environmental, human and consumer rights are easy to flout. Civil society, consumer rights groups and political.............
Badly neglected and mismanaged social sector
May 14, 2007
SOCIAL sector has remained the most neglected sector. Riddled with bad governance, the country has been ignoring this sector. Carrying a history of wrong choices and inappropriate priorities, poverty has become an integral part of lives of a vast majority of citizens.
An analysis of budget figures from 1947 to 2,005, shows that development has received the lowest budget allocations, whereas combined expenditure on defence and debt servicing has been eating away the larger part of the pie. .............
Featured Articles
Canal controversy
DAWN • August 7, 2026
RECENTLY put into trial operation, Jalalpur canal has stoked a new controversy between Punjab and Sindh. A summary of the Sindh government, raising objections against the project, was already pending with the Council of ..........
Manmade drought
June 16, 2026
ONCE again, barrages in Sindh and Balochistan are facing a crisis. In the second week of June, the Guddu and Kotri barrages received 30 per cent and 60pc less water, respectively, than their due share under the 1991 water apportionment accord. Kharif sowing is at its peak and, under a baking sun, Sindh’s growers are on the roads demanding water for their crops. At one point, in the first week of June, the flow at Guddu was only 74,500 cusecs, against an allocation of 108,340 cusecs for Sindh and Balochistan.......................
Hydro war crime
March 24, 2026
WATER is as precious a commodity as oil for countries of the Middle East. In the absence of freshwater resources, the region relies heavily on expensive, desalinated water. During the current war in the Gulf, the protagonists have not only aimed projectiles at oil depots, they have also decimated two water purification plants. If more water plants are targeted, the fallout could be worse than the consequences of blasting oil stocks. Iran has claimed that the US attacked a freshwater desalination plant on Qeshm Island, disconnecting water supply to 30 villages...........................
Global freshwater bankruptcy
Two recent reports have revealed alarming data on rapidly worsening water balance of the world. United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health has just released a startling report: Living Beyond our Hydrological Means in the Post-Crisis Era. Prior to this, World Bank had released a report: Continental Drying: A Threat to Our Common Future. Both these reports paint a grim picture of global freshwater inventories...........................
The corporate farming dream
February 23, 2025
The Punjab government has launched a project to develop agriculture in Cholistan.
However, the Sindh government has expressed reservations over the initiative. The latter has submitted a summary to the Council of Common Interests, a constitutional forum mandated with addressing concerns of provinces, including those related to sharing and use of water resources. However, a CCI meeting has not been convened for one year although the constitution mandates a quarterly meeting...........................
The corporate farming dream
February 23, 2025
The Punjab government has launched a project to develop agriculture in Cholistan.
However, the Sindh government has expressed reservations over the initiative. The latter has submitted a summary to the Council of Common Interests, a constitutional forum mandated with addressing concerns of provinces, including those related to sharing and use of water resources. However, a CCI meeting has not been convened for one year although the constitution mandates a quarterly meeting...........................
Canal controversy
DAWN • August 7, 2026
RECENTLY put into trial operation, Jalalpur canal has stoked a new controversy between Punjab and Sindh. A summary of the Sindh government, raising objections against the project, was already pending with the Council of ..........
Parched Sindh
January 11, 2025
SINDH comprises 18 per cent of Pakistan’s land mass and 16pc of its total cultivable area.
While the agricultural sector is the lynchpin of the provincial economy, Sindh also contributes about 23pc to the country’s national agricultural value added: 41pc to the national output of rice, 31pc to sugarcane and 21pc to wheat. The rural communities and urban markets rely heavily on the performance of this integral sector...........................
Parched Sindh
January 11, 2025
SINDH comprises 18 per cent of Pakistan’s land mass and 16pc of its total cultivable area.
While the agricultural sector is the lynchpin of the provincial economy, Sindh also contributes about 23pc to the country’s national agricultural value added: 41pc to the national output of rice, 31pc to sugarcane and 21pc to wheat. The rural communities and urban markets rely heavily on the performance of this integral sector...........................