Book Title: Development Challenges of Pakistan: Constraints and Choices
Author: Jamil Nasir
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Pages: 616 pages
Jamil Nasir’s book, ‘Development Challenges of Pakistan: Constraints and Choices’ (available online on Amazon), begins by questioning: “Why Pakistan is unable to put itself in a trajectory of long-term sustainable growth?” The 469 pages that follow this question attempt to answer it. This study differs from traditional economic literature on similar topics as it goes “beyond fiscal numbers like balance of payments, current account deficit, taxes and public debt, et cetera”, and tries to analyze the “constraints and structures” that have hindered sustainable economic growth in Pakistan.
Pakistan has witnessed intermittent periods of economic booms and busts. According to the author, a primary reason that the boom periods were not sustainable was a lack of inclusivity. The political and economic institutions of the country remain extractive, and policies seem to be devoid of the plight of the citizens, particularly of the lowest wealth quartile of society. A truly inclusive social, economic and political scenario should achieve four objectives: “benefit sharing, opportunity, participation, and empowerment.” Human resource development is considered as one of the key factors that can ensure inclusivity and overcome the “constraints on economic growth”.
The author quotes the European historian on South Asia, Ian Talbot: “Economic policy would recognize that past rapid growth, although giving Pakistan temporary advantage over its neighbors, had failed to raise it to middle-income status because it had neglected human development. Pakistan lacked in the long-term the human capital to take advantage of globalization. Requirements of international competitiveness as much as of justice and social cohesion should place the tackling of inequality at the heart of future growth models.”
Human resource development provides “opportunities” for upward socio-economic mobility of individuals that would concomitantly “empower” them to “participate” and be “stakeholders and beneficiaries” of economic growth.
J. Nasir writes: “The goal of economic growth remains elusive if it is not integrated with development. Education (both quantity and quality), health, material well-being, livelihood, the availability of employment opportunities, and decent living are important. For long-term sustainable growth, taking care of said dimensions of human resource development is highly significant. The binding constraints on economic growth imposed by deeper factors like institutions, geography, et cetera… can be overcome through focus on human resource development.” In other words, the “human factor is the most important determinant of economic growth.”
For the purpose of this book review (one amongst a series analyzing the other sections of this book), the chapter on education (chapter 4, The Question of Education), will be analyzed.
Some demographic statistics and analysis are mentioned in the concluding pages of Chapter 3 (Culture and Growth) that provide a backdrop for the discourse on education in the following chapter:
“The 2023 census puts the population at 241.299 million with growth rate of 2.55%. According to LFS 2020-21, working-age population is 159.8 million. More than one-third (40.0%) belongs to the age group 0 to 14 years while the population of youth aged (15-24 years) is 41.8 million (18.8%) and as such constitutes the second biggest group after children. The population of old aged people that is aged 65 or older is just 3.4%. These statistics make it amply clear that Pakistan is a country with huge potential of demographic dividend. It can capitalize on the potential of the young population for accelerating economic growth…”
Juxtapose the above-mentioned potential with the unfortunate reality mentioned in the following chapter: “… 26.2 million children are out of school in Pakistan… At a national level, almost one-third of children (32%) are out of school.” To put these statistics into perspective, the author states, “The population of the out of school children (OOSC) is bigger than the population of several European countries like the Netherlands, Belgium, or the entire population of the Scandinavian countries put together.”
According to J. Nasir, successive national education policies have reiterated the need to eradicate illiteracy and achieve universal literacy, with “amendment through Article 25-A” of the Constitution of Pakistan being the highest level of ‘paper commitment’— “making it obligatory for the state to impart basic education to all children in the age bracket of 5-16 years. All the provinces passed legislation in pursuance of Article 25-A for providing free and compulsory education to children.”
However, despite these policy initiatives and the 18th amendment in the Constitution, the low commitment to education remained apparent as the participation rate in schools in the provinces continued to decline. The exception being Punjab with an increase from 73 to 79% after the 18th amendment and “a modest increase…in KP (from 70 to 72%).”
The low commitment and allocation of resources in education has been highlighted by the author through examples of the deplorable state of infrastructure in public schools. “Overall, 40% of primary schools in Pakistan are without electricity, 30% do not have drinking water, 28% do not have toilets, and 29% are without boundary walls.”
Despite these deplorable conditions, the primary reason for OOSC remains “material realities and socio-economic hierarchy of relationships in the society”. That is why “51% of the OOSC belong to the poorest wealth quintile. For the richest quintile of population, this figure is 4%.”
“The Children of poor families are engaged in some type of economic activity (which can be monetized) … they supplement the family’s income… the opportunity cost in the form of forgone earnings of sending the children to school for the poor is high… As is the case with all investments, the poor weigh the costs and benefits of sending their children to school. Education is a risky investment for them when compared with the guaranteed, though low, returns that their children get by engaging in low-income-generating activities particularly in rural areas.”
This economic dimension needs to be addressed to reduce the number of OOSC in the country. The author is correct in stating: “This aspect of the problem does not enter the into the mental calculus of the elite and the policy-makers due to their poor understanding of the lives of the poor.”
J. Nasir mentions ways in which the growing number of OOSC and dropouts could be reversed, while keeping the opportunity cost aspect in mind (immediate low-income generation by the children of the poor versus education). Some of his recommendations are:
- Monetary benefits to cover the opportunity costs of sending children to school, such as stipends, cash transfers, et cetera.
- Education should “be free in the real sense, which means that books, food, uniforms, et cetera are provided free of charge in public schools.”
- Education should provide skills required by the market.
- Policies are needed that attach “certain future opportunities to education, clearly visible to the poor parents.”
- The curriculum needs to be flexible and have a “local touch” that places emphasis on skills required in the households in a particular area. In other words, designed to provide immediate benefits to the families that have sent their children to school. For instance, “skills may be imparted in rural schools that make students better at agriculture-related work, like better use of soil through tunnel farming, enhancing the productivity of livestock, et cetera.”
Enrolled Students
The author proceeds to describe the state of students studying in the education system available to them. He writes: “seventy-five percent of students cannot read and understand a simple text by age 10. The level of learning poverty in Pakistan is higher compared to other countries with similar levels of development.” In addition, while “Pakistan has certainly made some gains, but the situation is not very encouraging. Forty-one percent in grade 5 and 82% in grade 3 cannot read a story with comprehension in national or regional languages.”
The standard of education available is greatly linked to the socioeconomic, gender, urban-rural divide. The varying levels of education imparted to students depending on the type of schools they attend—elite private, low-cost private, public, Madaris—determines their success, with students at elite private schools having a clear advantage over the other, thereby intensifying the stratification.
J. Nasir explains: “Students coming from various systems of education are denizens of alien worlds. Different streams of education intensify social stratification and education, rather than becoming an equalizing force or a great leveler, deepens socio-economic disparities it claims to end. Socio-economic class basically dictates educational success, intergenerational mobility, and prosperity. Children enrolled in public sector schools and low-fee private schools face the greatest disadvantages compared to their counterparts enrolled in elite schools. Different streams of education erode solidarity and embolden the elite to dissociate themselves from those less educated and less fortunate.”
These disparities and the ailment and peculiarities of our education system cannot be resolved by merely pumping more money into the system or increasing the number of schools and teachers. Even the increase in the rising education attainment will not ensure proportional economic growth and prosperity. The prime goals of education in Pakistan should be “the development of professional skills for increasing lifetime earnings and social mobility”
Therefore, according to the author, the approach to imparting education has to change. “The difference between “knowledge and skills” and schooling” needs to be appreciated… Higher levels of education are not the deterministic factor of economic growth, rather skills developed through education actually drive economic development. Quality education with focus on honing cognitive skills is considered important for economic growth.”
J. Nasir follows this with his analysis on higher education and the “Quality of Research”, “Promise of Education Technology” and “Wealth Creators vs. Rent-Seekers.” However, we would prefer to conclude this book review (or more precisely chapter review) with the authors opinion on what is required from the education system in Pakistan:
“The curriculum and education system need to be geared towards simulating students’ abilities to think, challenge themselves, apply logic, and be creative. Quality needs to be the overarching priority of education in schools, colleges and universities…”
This chapter review was only a compilation of excerpts and related ideas from the book. For data, analysis and policy recommendations there should be an in-depth study by writers, scholars, journalists, educationist, economists and policy makers of this book. If for nothing else but to gain a holistic perspective of Pakistan’s socio-economic past, present and potential future, this book is a must read.
(Note: The chapters that follow deal with health care, inequalities, misallocation of land, rural growth, poverty, public sector performance, the legal system, fiscal and trade capacities, social capital and corruption, and militancy. CQ will attempt to review these chapters in its upcoming issues)
