Pakistonomy

A record-breaking heatwave has been wreaking havoc across the subcontinent, impact the wheat and mange harvest, setting fire to forests, and giving us a trailer of what climate change can do to our world.

In this episode, Uzair talks to Dr. Erum Sattar of what is the latest research showing about where the world is headed and what actions governments and individuals must take to day to reduce the likelihood of the worst-case scenarios becoming a reality.

Dr.Erum Sattar is the Program Director of the Sustainable Water Management Program and a Lecturer at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the Elizabeth Haub School of Law, Pace University and has taught at Northeastern University School of Law, and the National University of Singapore School of Law where she taught the school’s first-ever course on water law and policy.

Reading Recommendations:

- Diplomacy and Capitalism: The Political Economy of U.S. Foreign Relations

- Water: A Biography by Giulio Boccaletti

- Invisible China: How the Urban-Rural Divide Threatens China’s Rise by Natalie Hell and Scott Rozelle

- Metabolical: The truth about processed food and how it poisons people and the planet by Robert H. Lustig

There is a widely-held belief that strong governments deliver reforms and sustainable growth. Research, however, shows otherwise.

In this episode, Uzair talks to Dr. Irfan Nooruddin about his research on this topic, based on his must-read book Coalition Politics and Economic Development: Credibility and the Strength of Weak Governments.

Dr. Nooruddin is is the senior director of the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center and the Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Professor of Indian Politics in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Irfan conducts research in the political economy of development, trade, and investment, and the challenges of democratization in the 21st century. He is the author of The Everyday Crusade (Cambridge University Press, 2022), Elections in Hard Times (Cambridge University Press, 2016), Coalition Politics and Economic Development (Cambridge University Press, 2011) and more than thirty scholarly articles and book chapters. In 2012, he was a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC., and is a Team Member of Lokniti: Programme in Comparative Democracy in New Delhi, India.

He has a PhD in Political Science from the University of Michigan and a BA in Economics from Ohio Wesleyan University. He was born and raised in Bombay, India.

You can download his book from this link: https://www.coalitionpoliticsandeconomicdevelopment.com/chapters.html

Reading recommendations:

- Political Order in Changing Societies by Samuel Huntington

- Democracy and Development by Adam Jaworski

- Scientist: E. O. Wilson: A Life in Nature by Richard Rhodes

The situation in Balochistan has been complex for decades starting with the way in which Balochistan became part of Pakistan following independence in 1947. In recent months, the insurgency there has picked pace, but many forget that there are two insurgencies roiling the province. In addition, the economic situation is dire, with citizens facing abject poverty and a continued extractive approach to economic development.

This episode is an Urdu conversation with Rafiullah Kakar, a public policy expert based in Quetta. Rafiullah writes a column for Dawn, which is a must-read. You can find his writings here: https://www.dawn.com/authors/8211/rafiullah-kakar

Reading Recommendations:

- Wretched of the Earth By Frantz Fanon

- Justice by Michael Sandel

- Islamic Exceptionalism by Shadi Hamid

- Remotely Colonial by Nina Swidler

Crypto is going through another winter with prices of all major crypto assets down sharply. There has also been the Luna collapse, which has raised a lot of questions about the future of the crypto and Web3 economy.

In this episode, Uzair talks to Salahuddin Khawaja about what's going on in the crypto economy and how is he navigating the ongoing downturn.

Salahuddin Khawaja is CEO of Hypermode, a crypto consulting firm - helping clients design, build, grow and transform in Web3.

Pakistan’s economy is spiraling out of control with the rupee hitting a record low on a daily basis. What is driving this crisis and how can Pakistan get out of this tailspin?

This episode focuses on the ongoing crisis, with Ammar H. Khan joining the podcast to offer his perspective on what is going on and the path forward. Ammar is a non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council, and is the Group Chief Risk Officer at Karandaaz Pakistan, a UK FCDO and BMGF backed entity that focuses on enabling access to finance for Small & Medium Enterprises, and digital financial inclusion.

Previously, he has worked with the largest asset manager in Pakistan as a Chief Risk Officer, as well as at HSBC in varying roles in sovereign risk assessment, and credit risk. In addition, he has been a consultant to multiple energy projects, from coal mines to LNG power plants, and terminals, with an accumulated ticket size of more than US$10 billion. Having worked in projects across the energy value chain, Ammar has an in-depth understanding of the intricacies of the sector.

He tweets at @rogueonomist.

Pakistan's monetary policy has been the focus of attention over the last few years, particularly since Dr. Reza Baqir became governor in 2019. His three year tenure is up, which is a good time to assess the central bank and its performance.

In this episode, Uzair talks to Ariba Shahid, a business journalist based in Pakistan, about the highs and lows of the SBP over the last few years.

Uzair talks to Maleeha Lodhi about Pakistan's foreign policy and the repercussions of the regime change conspiracy theory.

Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi most recently served as Pakistan's Representative to the United Nations. Previously, she served as Pakistan's envoy to the Court of St James' and twice as its ambassador to the United States.

There has been a lot of talk about a foreign conspiracy in Pakistan, particularly by former prime minister Imran Khan and his followers. While this conspiracy theory is outlandish and has been debunked by many experts, Khan and his followers continue to believe it.

But is Khan really standing against up for Pakistan when it comes to pushing back against foreign powers that have exercised influenced over Pakistan over the decades? Or is this just political rhetoric?

In this Urdu discussion, Uzair talks to Dr. Ayyaz Mallick about the structural underpinnings of Pakistan's society, politics, and economy and how these structures allow foreign powers to influence the country.

Dr. Mallick is a Lecturer at the University of Liverpool and has a PhD from York University.

Reading Recommendations:

- On the Jewish Question by Karl Marx

- The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte by Karl Marx

- The Wretched of the Earth by Franz Fanon

A lot has happened in Pakistan over the last few weeks, with Imran Khan's government first creating a constitutional crisis and then losing power in a dramatic late-night vote in the National Assembly.

But what does this mean for Pakistan's flawed and floundering democracy? And how should we view this moment in time from a historical perspective?

In this episode, Uzair Younus talks to Dr. Ilhan Niaz, Head of the Department of History at the Quaid-e-Azam University, about the impact of ongoing events on Pakistan's political economy.

The COVID-19 pandemic, a once-in-a-century event, caused widespread socioeconomic upheaval in the world. In Pakistan, there were fears that the country would descend into chaos, but the country was able to navigate this crisis without realizing the worst-case scenarios. Credit for this goes to the Khan government and the NCOC, which did an excellent job coordinating the public health response to the pandemic.

In this episode, Uzair talks to Maha Rehman and dives deeper into how a data-led approach helped deal with the crisis, and how collaboration across the border in India also played a role.

Maha is a data analytics specialist and has almost a decade of experience in designing and executing evidence-based programs, products and policies to improve service delivery and impact. She has also setup the Analytics Wing at CERP that is focused on embedding data in the decisions and operations of private and public sector companies to increase efficiency, impact and profit. Prior to this, she has led research experiments at CERP and at World Bank in the fields of education, public finance and governance.