css Aspirants & The Future of Pakistan
 

[SIZE="5"]Envisaging a bright future for Pakistan[/SIZE]
By: Wish Maker

The bad thing about aspiring for a competitive exam here in Pakistan is that one has to do so many things which otherwise he would never like to do. For an instance, at least, you need to be or pretend to be aware of every single move in the national and international political arena of the country. You also need to keep a close eye on the socio-economic challenges faced by your country and in turn, come up with possible solutions. Above all, you will only be tolerated if you portray a picture that shows an all bright future of the country. Despite of the fact, the realities at the ground level are always in stark contrast. This is the shortest possible way of establishing yourself as a forward looking, optimistic and a loyal son of the soil. Through this article, I would certainly like to see this tag shining on my chest.


Recently, I have seen a lot of discussions on different forums about the future of Pakistan. It has become quite a buzz word, believe it or not. It is everywhere; face book, CSS forum, blogs, radio and TV talk shows, conferences, workshops you name any. The participants and the topics might not be the same but what is common in all these debates is that everybody seems deeply concerned about the current sorry state of affairs in the country and wants to see a change- a better Pakistan. This awakening among the politically sensitized youth as to how to make the future of Pakistan bright must be seen as a welcome gesture.


No ailment as it goes is cured until the right medicine is suggested. In the cure process to point out what causes the disease is more important than the disease itself. Similarly, the future of Pakistan can be made bright only if we could first point out the factors which are creating a hindrance on our way to a bright future and a cure for these factors. At the moment, Underperforming education system, a visionless mob of youth, energy crisis, poor agricultural sector and leadership crisis are the most important factors which are keeping the country away from the road that leads to a bright future. What is required here is to convert all the negatives into positives.

To do this first of all, we are to focus on the most dangerous anomaly- the education sector. Currently, Pakistan is crippled by an underperforming education system. We have to convert it into robust education system by allocating 6% of our GDP than the existing 2%. Other measures include improvement in infrastructure, change in syllabus and establishment of national examination system. To march towards a bright future and have a respectable place in the global knowledge economy of the 21st century, Pakistan will critically have to look into its entire education system.

Pakistan is one of the few countries which are blessed with a huge bulk of youth population. If one is to believe in the reports by the World Bank, the numbers stand at 60 to 65% of the total population. Every endeavor must be made to convert this population into an asset than a liability. To reap dividends from it, the youth must be equipped with the weapon of education. It will certainly go a long way in achieving a bright future for Pakistan.


In spite of its abundant natural resources, Pakistan is marred by an energy crisis. It is this power crisis that threatens the future of Pakistan more than anything. The current energy crisis has stunted the economic growth of the country. It has disturbed the peace and order of the country as reflected in violent public protests against the long power shortages. However, Pakistan can deal with it by investing in energy for long term planning and efficiently using its alternative resources like wind, solar, nuclear and coal. The last mentioned has the capacity to generate 10, 0000 MW for more than 200 years. The turnaround in the energy sector will definitely pave a road towards a bright future of Pakistan.


Among others, land reforms, corporate farming and change in political leadership will undoubtedly; help Pakistan to move towards a bright future. Reportedly, there are 300 families in the land of the pure that hold 45 % of the total cultivated land of the country. An estimated, 4.7 million families comprising around 33 million people are absolutely landless across Pakistan. If land reforms are initiated on the pattern of Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and our next door neighbor India, it will boost up the economic growth, promote political stability, and fight out poverty through gross root empowerment which in turn will lead to a bright future for Pakistan.


Making the long story short, Pakistan has a very bright future. A prosperous, peaceful and economically stable Pakistan is not a distant dream any more. It exists. It is real. What is required is the complete implementation of the above given prescription for ailing organs of the country on emergency basis. Those who deny the fact, they need to change their lenses.