Policy makers are stuck in the old ways of doing things, but are characterized by a shift in focus from issues such as the role of technocrats in economic growth to the realm of the social sciences for building better societies. The quality and content of public discourse around the world is changing. world.
By expanding the frontiers of knowledge, the social sciences have helped humanity solve the problems it encounters as it progresses and thrives. There is a consensus among social scientists that there is a close link between economic and social progress and political stability, said Shahid Javed Burki, former vice president of the World Bank. I wrote an article about the necessity.
This is evidenced by the latest media reports that international financial institutions, especially the International Monetary Fund (IMF), are seeking assurances from Pakistan that the country’s future political regime will respect the agreement signed by Islamabad.
According to Bakke, inclusive development means involving all parts of society in the development process. It should also be added that the latest research focuses on equitable distribution of the fruits of economic development.
Enlightened economic nationalism with a collectivist ethos has the potential to change the current trend towards international hegemony.
The increasing profile of economists, academics, social scientists, think tanks, analysts, and social activists around the world has created a friendly environment for different schools of thought to compete and flourish. political and social issues.
While the global movement of capital and people appears stagnant, international flows of ideas and new technologies are gaining momentum, eager to embrace cultural change in both management and work practices. There is a receptive mindset that
In his book Poverty, by America, noted author and American sociologist Matthew Desmond writes: It’s a situation where there aren’t enough options and it’s taken advantage of. As noted scholar Joseph Stiglitz puts it, market orthodoxy has turned economics into a religious faith. And in Pakistan, efforts to bring society together have failed utterly, and diversity calls for behavioral change, says one media analyst.
The eminent economist Clara Matthew said, “The deployment of austerity is the wrong economic policy based on the wrong economic theory and has never succeeded in achieving its stated objectives.” increase. Her views are widely shared.
Investors around the world fear that the recent failures of two US banks are a symptom of other bank problems. Banks were exposed to assets whose values were squeezed by rising interest rates, experts said.
Critics say austerity lowers economic activity, undermines aggregate supply, increases unemployment, and fosters inequality and poverty. Analyst Dr Omar Javed says the worst thing is that austerity policies perpetuate the ability of elites to influence public policy and reinforce exploitative economic institutional design.
Solutions must be negotiated among stakeholders for long-term sustainability — the 1973 Constitution and the 18th Amendment were the result of political engagement, but failed negotiations in the political arena led to the 1971 catastrophe.
Former Finance Minister Mikhta Ismail argues that while politics in the United States runs on a spectrum of left-right ideologies, this is not the case in Pakistan. He thinks you need a foundation.
In a recent article titled “An Unstable State,” eminent analyst Niaz Murtaza argued that the way Pakistan’s ruling regime moves forward is a flourishing ideological politics and a grassroots ideology based on egalitarian ideas. Ideology is defined as a system of ideas and ideals that form the basis of economic and political theory.
According to one estimate, about 31% of Pakistani youth are unemployed and 67% want to leave the country. The challenge is to provide young people with decent jobs and self-employment by giving them the entrepreneurial spirit and technical skills, as well as the necessary financing opportunities.
Technocrats think they have an economic solution, but politicians are unwilling to implement it, says senior political economist Dr Pervez Tahir. What is not appreciated is that economic solutions must be negotiated among stakeholders for long-term sustainability. I was. The 1973 Constitution and the 18th Amendment were the result of political commitment.
Pakistan also needs to keep pace with the changing world. On the international stage, “after decades of dizzying globalization, the pendulum is returning to the state,” says Quinn Slobodian, a professor of the history of thought at Wellesley College.
He points out that there is a lot of talk in America these days about bringing supply chains home. The U.S. Congress has passed his nearly $400 billion bill aimed at increasing domestic production, supporting the transition to green energy and reducing our dependence on foreign countries. “Experts have declared the dawn of a new era, the era of economic nationalism.”
Despite the economic progress it has achieved, globalization is currently fragmented and socially unsustainable. In an article titled “How Capitalism Works Today,” Professor Slobodian said:
As defined by one social scientist, a wise and progressive economic nationalism imbued with the spirit of collectivism would transform the current international distribution based on narrow and regressive nationalism into a non-hegemonic global economy. It has the potential to change.
Published March 20, 2023 in The Business and Finance Weekly, Dawn
