2006

Economics and Governance (The Presidential Address)

Ladies and Gentlemen, in the 60 years of postcolonial development, Pakistan and many other poor countries have followed many prescriptions that promised development. These countries went through phases of planning and controls, nationalisations and socialism, industrialisation strategies based on licenses and protection, the Washington consensus and many other prescriptions. Billions of dollars in loans and …

Economics and Governance (The Presidential Address) Read More »

Perception Survey of Civil Servants: A Preliminary Report

Despite various attempts at reforming the civil services the common perception seems to be that the system essentially remains similar to that inherited from the colonial past. Worse still, little is known about the perceptions of civil servants on various issues in civil service reforms. Against this backdrop, the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics conducted …

Perception Survey of Civil Servants: A Preliminary Report Read More »

Renew Cities to be the Engine of Growth

PIDE Cities Research Programme was initiated in Karachi with a conference titled Cities: the Engine of Growth on November 15-16, 2006. The conference was held in our largest city and was well-attended by economists, architects, town planners, Nazims, government officials, NGOs, journalists, and other citizens. The discussion was animated and about twenty-five speakers addressed the …

Renew Cities to be the Engine of Growth Read More »

Inflation Everywhere is a Monetary Phenomenon: An Introductory Note

Ever since the 1970s, when inflation became a virtually global phenomenon, controlling inflation has become a high priority for policy-makers. Given the well-known costs of inflation, policy now in all countries is inflation-averse. Perhaps one of the more important adverse consequences of inflation may be that high and persistent inflation is a regressive tax1 which …

Inflation Everywhere is a Monetary Phenomenon: An Introductory Note Read More »

Beyond Planning and Mercantilism:An Evaluation of Pakistan’s Growth Strategy

“The ideas of economists and political philosophers, both when they are right and when they are wrong, are more powerful than is commonly understood. Indeed the world is ruled by little else. Practical men, who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist. Madmen in …

Beyond Planning and Mercantilism:An Evaluation of Pakistan’s Growth Strategy Read More »

Promoting Domestic Commerce for Sustainable Pro-poor Growth

To frame the issue, two characteristics of Pakistan should be noted. First, Pakistan has a very large market of 160 million people. For decades, this fact has been ignored in policy because of the focus on production and exports.1 Second, a large and growing population has now produced a huge youth bulge in the population …

Promoting Domestic Commerce for Sustainable Pro-poor Growth Read More »

Gender and Empowerment Evidence from Pakistan

PIDE has for years been providing Pakistan with studies based on hard evidence and strong analysis. In keeping with this tradition, this volume, Gender and Empowerment: Evidence from Pakistan, presents survey-based evidence to examine several aspects of the role and status of women in our society. The study shows that gender differences in access/availability to …

Gender and Empowerment Evidence from Pakistan Read More »

Domestic Commerce – The Missing Link

Participants in the workshops noted the following factors as constraining domestic commerce: → Lack of educated and trained human resource. Education system not delivering the kind of manpower required. → Lack of physical infrastructure. Poor road network. Limited, expensive and uncertain electricity. → Frequent changes in Government policies. → Fundamentalists can impact commerce without threat …

Domestic Commerce – The Missing Link Read More »

Public Sector Efficiency Perspectives on Civil Service Reform

Order Now Economic research over the last decade has shown that underdevelopment persists where governance is of a poor quality. Un modernised and unreformed structures of governance often increase the cost of doing business and hence reduce the competitiveness of a country. It is no wonder that countries like Singapore, Malaysia, and Korea that developed …

Public Sector Efficiency Perspectives on Civil Service Reform Read More »