DAWN Editorials - 20th August 2025

[zarnishhayat]

Industrial policy FOR some months now, the government has been working on a new industrial policy that, according to Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, will encourage pro-business conditions in order to boost the pace of industrialisation.

Speaking at a workshop organised by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and the Pakistan Banks Association in Karachi recently, Mr Aurangzeb said the policy would soon be presented to the federal cabinet for approval. The reasons driving the government to frame an industrial policy framework are understandable: after years of painful macroeconomic adjustments that have seen industrial output shrink, factories close down, jobs lost and growth stagnate, the economy is showing tentative signs of stability.

Inflation has slowed, reserves have risen amid a stable exchange rate and an improved balance-of-payments position, interest rates are down even if they remain elevated and the fiscal deficit is narrowing under austere fiscal policies. Pakistan’s credit rating — though still in the speculative-grade category — has improved, while the bulls continue to lift the stock market. The hard-won economic recovery — even if fragile — has given the government confidence that the economy is poised to transition to the next phase of sustained growth. That is exactly why it wants to accelerate industrialisation and growth through business-friendly incentives.

Indeed, such strategies are important tools to attract fresh investments in priority industrial sectors. Global experience shows that fiscal, regulatory and other economic incentives and a positive business environment can foster industrial competitiveness, boost factory output and increase exports. Unfortunately, our own experience with previous industrial and export development policies has not been enviable.

We have seen successive governments formulate several ambitious policies, only to see them fail due to poor execution and an unreformed economic ecosystem. These strategies have mostly ended up rewarding inefficiencies in the economy through protectionism, subsidies and regulatory perks. Such ‘quick fixes’ have contributed more to the erosion of our economic competitiveness than to boosting resilience, and have prevented Pakistan from becoming part of global supply chains.

A new industrial policy isolated from complementary frameworks for the development of agriculture and services will not change anything. Besides, no strategy to grow the economy or industrialise the country can deliver results unless long-standing structural impediments like high energy costs and shortages, distortive taxation, low domestic savings, climate change challenges, and other factors are tackled alongside.

Without reforms in the entire ecosystem, even a well-drafted industrial policy will end up gathering dust. In the absence of complementary ecosystem reforms across industry, agriculture and services to create conditions conducive to competition, investment and innovation, even a meticulously prepared industrial policy will be doomed.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2025

Recurring cases TWENTY-ONE children have been paralysed by polio in Pakistan this year, the latest two in Kohistan and Badin. Each new case is a painful reminder that we remain one of only two countries where the virus still spreads. That a disease wiped out in most of the world still stalks our children is not just a health failure, it is a governance crisis. Billions of dollars have been invested in our eradication programme over three decades. Thousands of vaccinators have risked their lives to reach children in remote and conflict-affected areas. Yet security threats, poor coordination, weak accountability and misinformation have left gaping holes in coverage. The National Institute of Health has acknowledged that despite progress, children remain at risk in areas where vaccine acceptance is low. Recent environmental surveillance showing poliovirus in over a third of districts underscores how fragile progress is.

Campaigns cannot succeed if the same shortcomings crop up in every round. The latest is due from Sept 1 to 7, targeting over 28m children under five in 99 districts, with southern KP to be covered from Sept 15. But unless coverage gaps are plugged, the exercise risks delivering few results. Parents in many areas still distrust the drops, swayed by rumours that the vaccine is unsafe. Workers often inflate coverage data to satisfy superiors. Political leaders make statements but do little to build community support or strengthen health services. Even basics like clean water and waste disposal — essential for breaking faecal-oral transmission — remain neglected. The state must confront these failures honestly. Securing front-line workers, prosecuting attackers, ensuring transparent data and consistently engaging community leaders are vital steps. Linking campaigns with routine immunisation and sanitation would build trust. Pakistan cannot allow another generation to live under the shadow of an incurable but preventable disease. Political will, consistency and accountability are the only way out of this long-running tragedy.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2025

Ukraine peace push THERE is renewed momentum to end the Ukraine war — now in its fourth year — with US President Donald Trump pushing all parties involved to reach a deal. The US leader hosted his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, along with key European leaders, on Monday, just days after Mr Trump and Vladimir Putin had met in Alaska. Mr Zelensky’s last visit to Washington in February was a diplomatic disaster, with Donald Trump and the US vice president publicly berating the Ukrainian president. Things went much better this time, as there were smiles all around, and talk of an embryonic peace deal to end the hostilities that have put Ukraine and its Western backers up against Russia. The next step is a proposed summit between Mr Zelensky and Mr Putin which, it is hoped, could lead to a breakthrough and end the fighting that was sparked by Russia’s 2022 invasion of its western neighbour.

Perhaps the diplomatic blitz has been fuelled by Donald Trump’s desire to be seen as a ‘man of peace’, worthy of the Nobel Prize. Indeed, if a durable Ukraine peace deal does emerge, it will be a major feather in the Trumpian cap. But there is still a long way to go before the guns in both Kyiv and Moscow fall silent. Several variables remain. Principally, will Moscow give up Ukrainian territory it has seized, including Crimea, which it took in 2014? Will Ukraine drop plans of joining Nato and becoming a forward base for the Western alliance against Russia? Will the Putin-Zelensky summit even materialise? All these are key issues that must be resolved if there is to be a long-term settlement to the Ukraine question. While both sides have built competing narratives, there is no doubt that Russia’s invasion of its western neighbour was unacceptable, regardless of its historical claims. Similarly, Moscow’s concerns of being surrounded by Nato — with the alliance stationed at its borders — are not without merit. Any peace deal, therefore, must ensure Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty, while ending Russia’s West-led isolation, particularly dropping economic sanctions. Anything less will fail to bring long-lasting peace. And while Mr Trump is busy trying to end bloodshed in Europe, if he is serious about peacemaking, let him also turn his attention to the killing fields of Gaza and rein in Israel.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2025