Saudi delegation
PLANS to bring Saudi investment to Pakistan have clearly been put on the fast track. Over the past month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has visited the kingdom on two separate occasions, meeting the crown prince on both, while the Saudi foreign minister was in Islamabad in April, accompanied by other high officials. The latest in this series of top-level exchanges was a two-day investment conference held in the federal capital, which wrapped up on Tuesday. The Saudi side was represented by the assistant minister for investment, who brought with him a 50-member delegation representing 30 Saudi companies. Speaking at a reception on Monday for the Arab visitors, Mr Sharif said the time was near when bilateral business deals “worth billions of dollars” would be finalised. When he met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in early April, it had been reported that Riyadh was looking to invest $5bn in Pakistan. During the just-concluded conference, the Saudi assistant minister said his country saw Pakistan as a “high-priority economic investment and business opportunity”.
While $5bn of Saudi money will not turn around the Pakistani economy, such investments will send a signal to the world that this country is open for business. For too long, we have depended on foreign and multilateral loans and financial aid to keep the ship afloat, when courting foreign investment as well as ramping up exports is a far more sustainable model to uplift the economy. Saudi Arabia appears to be a natural choice to spearhead this campaign to attract foreign funds. Bilateral ties are old and deep, and have survived periods of turbulence. Pakistan has for decades exported labour to the kingdom, and benefited from the foreign exchange these workers send home. Moreover, the House of Sharif enjoys a close rapport with the House of Saud, a relationship which can be leveraged for the benefit of both states. But as has been written in these columns earlier, investment from Riyadh or any other foreign partner will benefit Pakistan most when there is internal political harmony, as well as transparency in policies. The Saudi crown prince is due in Pakistan soon — according to some reports, he may arrive in the next few days. The state should use the visit to cement the deals already discussed, so that work on the projects can begin in earnest.
Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2024
Narcotic darkness
WE have plenty of smoke with fire. Citizens, particularly parents, caught in Pakistan’s grave drug problem are on edge. Despite frequent reports of police and the ANF busting drug cartels, information about legal actions against peddlers is as scant as the conviction rate. The Organised Crime Unit of Lahore has captured an international ring that provided narcotics and ‘party drugs’ to elite youth. These criminals — the Jordan Gang — ran a network from Central Asia, Mexico, Canada, the US and other countries, and supplied exorbitantly priced drugs in Lahore and Multan, targeting select students in academic institutions. Their modus operandi — offer deals to youngsters on the internet through fake IDs and in partnership with corrupt GPO and police officials — should be a cause of concern for the authorities. This is not the first attempt at infecting the young: last August, two security officials at the Islamic University of Bahawalpur were caught with crystal meth and offensive videos of teachers and students. The Punjab Police released an alarming report last month: some 234 police officers were involved in the drug trade across Punjab.
Young people are experimental, anxious and restless, keen to dodge routine with a heady hit. Small wonder, then, that public health experts urge policymakers and law enforcement to understand that punishment-driven strategies are counterproductive. Instead, they must weed out rogue personnel and powerful groups who claim a lion’s share of the profits from narcotic rackets, so that sealing supply routes, including those along a porous border, is successful. The crisis also demands awareness campaigns and collaboration among parents, NGOs and educational facilities to identify signs of addiction and provide therapy and rehabilitation. Long-term success hinges on restructured narcotic courts so that faster trials can ensure a rise in conviction levels — the latter should, ideally, match the regularity of narcotic seizures. This country cannot allow addiction to rip through society and ravage our future generations.
Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2024