Pakistonomy

In this Urdu discussion, Uzair talks to historian, activist, and author Ammar Ali Jan about the Left's assessment of Pakistan's economy, the State Bank autonomy bill, and the types of reforms he would like to see in Pakistan's economy.

Ammar is author of the book Rule by Fear: Eight Theses on Authoritarianism in Pakistan, which is a must-read.

Reading Recommendation:

- 23 Things They Don't Tell You about Capitalism by Ha-Joon Chang

- Capitalism's Crisis Deepens by Richard D. Wolff

- China's Revolutions in the Modern World by Rebecca E. Karl

- Violent Fraternity by Shruti Kapila

In this Urdu discussion, Uzair talks to Shahid Mehmood about a recent article he published which showed how major issues since at least the 1980s continue to plague the economy. The discussion focuses on key drivers of these issues, why policy does not change to deal with this reality, and includes updates on economic developments in the former FATA regions.

Shahid Mehmood is an economist and research fellow at PIDE.

You can read his article here - https://www.dawn.com/news/1669368

You can read the PIDE Growth Strategy here - https://pide.org.pk/Research/PIDE-Reform-Agenda-Report.pdf

Reading Recommendations:

- Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

- Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco

- The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

- The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

- Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi

Uzair talks to Ovais Zuberi, founder of Shazday Foods, about Pakistan's agriculture sector, why it is in a state of perpetual crisis, and how we can learn from the rich agricultural history of this region to reform the sector. The conversation also touches on important market access and development reforms that are needed, including farm-to-market infrastructure in the country.

Welcome to Season 3 of Pakistonomy.

2022 will be a year where politics will dominate the discourse, and rightfully so. In the first episode of this season Amber Rahim Shamsi helps us understand key things we all should keep an eye on, and how they will affect the economy moving forward.

Amber is Head of Communications at Tabadlab. She is also an award-winning multi-media journalist, with wide-ranging experience in television, radio, online and the print media. She is also an International Visitor Leadership Programme (IVLP) and The Centre for Excellence in Journalism (ICFJ) fellow.

Reading Recommendations:

Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett

Interesting Times by Terry Pratchett

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

Rule of Fear by Ammar Ali Jan

Wolf Hall Trilogy by Hilary Mantel

Uzair talks to regular guest Ariba Shahid about key events in 2021 and the outlook for 2022.

This is our last episode of the year. We hope you have a safe and enjoyable holiday season with your family and friends. If you've enjoyed our podcast over the year, please rate it, share it, and spread the word.

See you in 2022!

In this Urdu discussion, Uzair talks to Dr. Kamran Bokhari about his recently-published essay titled "The Long Shadow of Deobandism in South Asia." This essay is a must-read as it provides a long history about the rise of political Islam in the subcontinent and how it has shaped Pakistan.

Dr. Kamran Bokhari is Director of Analytical Development at the Newlines Institute. Dr. Bokhari is also a national security and foreign policy specialist at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute. Bokhari has also served as the Central Asia Studies Course Coordinator at U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute. He was a Fellow with the Program on Extremism at George Washington University (2016-18). Dr. Bokhari has also been a Senior Consultant with The World Bank since 2009. He has 15 years of experience in the private sector intelligence space during which he provided intellectual leadership in the publishing of cutting-edge geopolitical analysis & forecasts.

You can read the full essay here -https://newlinesmag.com/essays/the-long-shadow-of-deobandism-in-south-asia/

Uzair talks to Dr. Rosita Armytage about her book Big Capital in an Unequal World: The Micropolitics of Wealth in Pakistan. We talked about factions within Pakistan's elites, their worldview, morals, and perspectives about Pakistan and its political economy. The book is highly recommended if you want to learn more about this fascinating subject.

Reading Recommendations:

- Politics, Landlords and Islam in Pakistan by N. Martin

- Political Kinship in Pakistan: Descent, Marriage, and Government Stability by S. M. Lyon

- Anxious Wealth: Money and Morality Among China's New Rich by J. Osburg

Uzair talks to Khurram Husain, incoming editor at Profit, about the latest economic developments in Pakistan. The conversation focused on the current government's economic vision, whether or not the COVID-19 stimulus was overdone, and the underlying causes behind inflation in the country.

Khurram also shared his thoughts on the State Bank's change of decision making processes and his priorities at Profit.

Uzair talks to Mosharraf Zaidi, founder of Tabadlab, about his latest opinion column, why he is not optimistic about a change in elite behavior, and ways in which the state should deal with groups like the TLP and PTM.

Reading Recommendations are all books written by Mariana Mazzucato:

- Mission Economy: A Moonshot Guide to Changing Capitalism

- The Value of Everything: Makers and Takers in the Global Economy

- The Entrepreneurial State

If you like this podcast, then do check out Tabadlab's latest podcast focusing on Climate Change. Listen to Climate Mahaul using the link below or by searching for it on your favorite podcast app.

https://soundcloud.com/climatemahaul

Uzair talks to Dr. Tanvi Madan about her research paper which looks at the role of major power rivalries in the broader South Asian region. The emerging US-China rivalry and growing tensions between India and China are already having an impact on the geopolitics of the region. As this rivalry sharpens, countries in the region will have to strategize and find ways to effectively balance against these major powers in a way that maximizes the benefits they can derive in line with their own national interests. We also talked about potential areas of cooperation in the region, including climate change.

Dr. Tanvi Madan is a senior fellow in the Project on International Order and Strategy in the Foreign Policy program, and director of The India Project at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC. Madan’s work explores India’s role in the world and its foreign policy, focusing in particular on India's relations with China and the United States. She also researches the U.S. and India’s approaches in the Indo-Pacific, as well as the development of interest-based coalitions, especially the Australia-India-Japan-U.S. Quad.

Her book Fateful Triangle: How China Shaped US-India Relations during the Cold War is a must-read along with her most recent paper for CFR:

- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07N8DRSQC/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_3YRDM3S9FWQ92PTE366H

- https://www.cfr.org/report/major-power-rivalry-south-asia

Reading Recommendations:

- The Metaphysical Club: A Story of Ideas in America by Louis Menand

- War and Peace in Modern India by S. Raghavan

- Animosity at Bay: An Alternative History of the India-Pakistan Relationship, 1947-1952 by Pallavi Raghavan

- The Price of Aid: The Economic Cold War in India by David Engerman