Pakistan Reader# 620, 5 July 2023
Prerana P
On 10 May 2023, the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives published an essential road map named the “5E Framework: To Turnaround Pakistan”. The Pakistan Conference on 28 June 2022 proposed the 5E initiative after the present government witnessed huge macro-economic imbalances, increased debt levels, currency depreciation, fiscal deficit and other downfalls.
5E Framework: A brief note
Although Pakistan recorded much better economic performances during 2013-2018, the country experienced an immense drop during the change of government regime. It delayed various ongoing projects and investments, which hampered economic growth.
The 5E Framework aims to bring together prominent public stakeholders, foreign missions, think tanks, NGOs, academia, parliamentarians, and civilians to work on a medium-term plan for achieving Vision 2025. The key theme of the article includes the 5Es; Exports, E-Pakistan, Environment and Climate Change, Energy and Infrastructure, Equity and Empowerment.
Following are five major takeaways from Pakistan’s 5E framework
1. Improving Pakistan’s exports
The policy framework suggests exports in tackling foreign currency liquidity challenges and emphasises product and market diversification, brand development, production networking and global value chains. Pakistan’s consistent import-based or consumption-led economic growth has hindered the reserves in paying for the imports. Due to its weak foreign direct investment (FDI), and persistent balance of payment crisis, Pakistan witnessed the lowest export-GDP ratio in recent times amongst its neighbours. The government heavily depends on the textile sector, which consists of 60 per cent of its total export and the export is confined to a few major destinations, which includes the UK, EU, US, and China. The government signed various trade agreements and productive meetings with Central Asian Republics (CARs), and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Asian Productivity Organization (APO) and Korean Development Institute (KDI). The Export Readiness Programme announced a boost in the Geographical indication (GI), Information Technologies and Board of Investments, which would further facilitate the export of Pakistan.
2. Strengthening foundation and accessibility for E-Pakistan
The Internet is one of the vital factors for the country’s progress, which can further enhance economic prosperity and citizen empowerment. The report maintains that IT exports will exceed USD 2.5 billion, lower than the emerging IT players. Based on the Global Risk Report 2023, Pakistan would most likely face severe threats like loss of privacy, data fraud, and cyber espionage due to the failure of cyber security. Based on Statista, Artificial Intelligence and Robotics projects are expected to exceed USD 563 billion by 2030 worldwide. The Government of Pakistan stated that the establishment of the National Information Technology Board (NITB), National Incubation Centres (NICs), National Centre for Cyber Security (NCCS) and further promotion of E-Commerce could elevate the digital infrastructure in the country.
3. Protecting the environment
The World Economic Forum Global Risks Report 2023 identifies terrestrial biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse as emerging severe threat in Pakistan. The section on Environment and Climate Change aims to provide legal, institutional and policy-based objectives to ensure environmental, food and water sustainability. The rising population and lack of adequate resources increase the risk of extreme disasters like drought and floods. Government initiatives such as the National Clean Air Policy (NCAP) 2023, the 4RF strategy, Livelihood Diversification of Balochistan, and Resilience Enhancement are vital in eradicating environmental degradation and climate change. Government initiatives such as Regenerative Farming, Enhancement of Rice, Sugarcane and Wheat, the Naulong Dam Project, and SWAT projects aim to eradicate food and water security issues.
4. Providing efficient energy resources
The recent energy crisis has pushed the population into a complete blackout, which indicates the country's poor energy management. Over 40 million Pakistanis still need access to electricity, and the government's load-shedding and periodic power cuts have yet to help the country with its crisis. Pakistan's government constantly tries to diversify energy investments in sectors like wind, solar and hydropower. The focus would also slide towards industries, transportation, and households, which can reduce energy consumption and promote energy sustainability. Energy efficiency and Conservation (EE&C) is among the critical sustainable development. The Planning Commission has stressed the importance of energy conservation through the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) action plan. The formulated National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Policy of 2023 aims to save an energy set of nine million tonnes of Oil Equivalent by 2023, and the policy would further benefit sectors such as greenhouse and control the emission.
5. Establishing equity and empowering public delivery mechanisms
Despite the country's advancement in poverty reduction schemes, Pakistan ranks lower among the developing countries in the socio-economic development index. The main reason attributed were the population growth, extreme social and economic disparities, and poor infrastructure and services—the proposed intervention is designed to enhance citizens' high-quality education, health and social protection. The long-term plan in the health sector aims to reform and build universal health coverage, initiatives in eradicating hepatitis, diabetes, and polio, establishing police stations and public hospitals, social acceptance among civilians regarding the importance of adequate nutrition, family planning and immunisation coverage. The US-Pakistan Knowledge Corridor has provided scholarships for the 25 top globally ranked universities, which could benefit over 5000 higher education students from Balochistan and FATA regions. Establishing special education, a mobility support scheme for women and training for differently abled individuals would further foster young development.
References
“5Es Framework to turnaround Pakistan,” Ministry of Planning, Development & Special Initiatives, 10 May 2023
“The Global Risks Report 2023,” World Economic Forum ,30 January 2023
Shahzad Paracha, “WEF Global Risks Report 2023: Pakistan faces rapid inflation, debt crisis among other risks for next 24 months,” Pakistan Today, 11 June 2023
“The Recent Energy Crisis in Pakistan,” The Borden Project, 11 February 2023
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