Zubair Qureshi
The present government has kept urban forestry model a priority in cities’ development agenda and Climate Change Ministry is taking necessary measures to realize that model.This was said by Prime Minister’s Adviser on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam while attending a conference jointly organized by the PRIME Institute, United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) and UN Habitat here Saturday. The panellists in the conference discussed ways to achieve prosperity through local economic development for the urban metropolitans of the country.Administrators, mayors, senior economists and many stake holders from different cities across the country shared participated in the event. Adviser on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam emphasized the need for a clean and green Pakistan. “The focus should not be solely on the local economic development but also on ecological sustainability”, he said adding soon his ministry following PM’s vision is going to launch Clean Green Index to improve urban infrastructure, green cover and public service delivery in big urban centers of Pakistan.
Dr Nasir Khan, Executive Director, National Vocational Training Commission discussed the lack of technical and vocational training facilities in the country. “The people who are being trained are not being equipped with necessary skills to operate in the industries. The technical and vocational training has never been considered as a factor of production or for increasing industrial competitiveness”, he recalled.
Dr. Marius Venter, Director Cenled, University of Johannesburg, South Africa, highlighted common problems facing cities of developing countries such as extreme poverty, health issues, food insecurity, migration and climate change.
He iterated the role of local authorities in local economic development. Empowerment of human capital is deemed necessary for strengthening the cities. He talked about business development and one stop centers where the delays in obtaining local authority approvals for land development have become a universal issue in the property development sector. Pakistan’s economy has remained virtually stagnant and the growth numbers have been unimpressive.
Junaid Ismail Makda, President, Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that Karachi is a major contributor in GDP (70 percent). The governance structure is fragmented in Karachi. It is the responsibility of the provinces to allocate appropriate funds/resources to the local government for urban development. Public-Private Partnership is a key to achieve sustainable urban development.
Jahangir Sherpao, President Institute of Architects Pakistan said we need to create new cities West of Indus and move from there to East of Indus. A new city should be established near each Special Economic Zone.
Syed Ahmed, Chairman, Pakistan Software Houses Association highlighted absence of a visionary leadership of cities. Government does not provide adequate facilitation to the businesses. The public sector is often reluctant to disseminate the data to the private sector.
Rehan Hashmi, Chairman, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation shared the concern that the utility service market should not be monopolized. Furthermore, bureaucratic setup in Pakistan is one of the major obstacles in attracting investments. Administrative and financial power should be dissolved from provinces to the local bodies as per constitution of Pakistan, 1973.
Tariq Javed Mengal, Administrator, Quetta Metropolitan Corporation iterated that one size fits all strategy would not be effective in case of Pakistan. One cannot replicate the urban development model of Turkey or South Korea and expect it to deliver in case of Pakistan. The increase in income taxes and customs is not helping the situation either. One window operation is missing which is hindering the investment prospects in the cities.
Renowned economist Dr. Ashfaque Hasan Khan, Principal and Dean, School of Social Sciences and Humanities, NUST highlighted the decline in the quality of higher education system in Pakistan. “The number of unemployed PhDs have increased overtime. We have human resource but not of quality”, he said suggesting that the HEC needs to focus on enhancing the quality of human capital.
