Pakistan

Urgent debt relief needed as Pakistan faces perfect debt trap

12 November 2020 - by Abdul Khaliq

The indicators of a severe debt crisis were already present in Pakistan long before the Covid-19 crisis hit. Coordinated efforts by CSOs all round the world are needed to ensure that countries like Pakistan are not left alone dealing with its (...)
Cancel the debt

23 April 2020 - by Mustafa Talpur

Last week, the G20 group of rich countries decided to postpone the debt payment that is due to be paid to G20 governments up to the end of 2020 for developing countries. This will help Pakistan free up some resources to tackle the pandemic. (...)
Illegal projects: How World Bank Arbitrators Mugged Pakistan

9 December 2019 - by Jeffrey D. Sachs

Thanks to the World Bank’s flawed and corrupt investment arbitration process, the rich are making a fortune at the expense of poor countries. The latest shakedown is a $5.9 billion award against Pakistan’s government in favor of two global mining (...)
Pakistan and World Bank Settlement of Investment Disputes – Do not pay the unfair fine; oppose the unjust decision of ICSID

22 July 2019 - by Farooq Tariq

This is a story of the dodgy deal by a multi national company and then earning massive amount of money through the so-called process of Settlement of Investment Disputes, a World Bank institution acting against developing countries. This is a (...)
Boom and then bust?

30 April 2019 - by Michael Roberts

Last March, [I posted that the global economy seemed to be in a fantasy world->https://thenextrecession.wordpress.com/2019/03/22/the-fantasy-world-of-the-long-depression where stock markets hit new highs but output of goods and services, (...)
Is Pakistan on the way to living without the IMF?

1 December 2018 - by Abdul Khaliq

Pakistan is perhaps the only country in South Asia with a history of repeated engagements with the IMF – 21 loan agreements since 1959. The last one was concluded in September 2016. Despite that, Pakistan’s economic woes have not been resolved. (...)
Is Pakistan falling into China’s debt trap?

16 April 2018 - by Abdul Khaliq

• Pakistan will have to payback $100 billion to China by 2024 of total investment of $18.5 billion, which China has invested on account of bank loans in 19 early harvest projects, under CPEC. • China has become the biggest lender to Pakistan after (...)
Bushra Khaliq, CADTM Pakistan : “There are immense impacts of the climate changes on poor communities in Pakistan”

6 February 2018 - by Bushra Khaliq , Robin Delobel

We asked a few questions to Bushra Khaliq during IIRE’s last Ecosocialist school session in Amsterdam. Bushra Khaliq has been a feminist activist and a member of CADTM Pakistan for years. She gave us insightful answers about this country which (...)
An introduction to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

24 November 2017 - by Robin Lee

While initial plans for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) predate those of OBOR it has been given renewed impetus under it and has come to be described as a flagship OBOR project. Along with the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic (...)
Pakistan: CPEC - A “game-changer” or another “East India Company”?

21 March 2017 - by Abdul Khaliq

China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a big business proposition with huge Chinese investments spreading over 15 years having a total outlay of up to $46 billion: $35 billion on the energy sector in the mode of IPPs (independent Power (...)
Blind borrowing – Is Pakistan fast slipping into a debt trap?

8 December 2016 - by Dr. Kamal Monnoo

Owing to slowdown in exports and provided external borrowing are not capped, Pakistan’s external debt to export ratio is projected to be at 442% by 2019-20, which obviously will make it unserviceable. Exports, which used to finance 80% of imports (...)
Brick kiln workers and the debt trap in Pakistani Punjab

3 August 2016 - by Antonio De Lauri

Debt is everywhere a tool of social control, and no more so than in the brick kilns of Pakistani Punjab, where it travels across generations. Central and south Asian brick kilns have long attracted the attention of humanitarian agencies, (...)
The scourge of rising inequality – A case of Pakistan

26 January 2016 - by Abdul Khaliq

The issue of inequality, which was shunted aside amidst rapid growth over the last few decades, has resurfaced with a vengeance, particularly after the global financial crisis. The trend has been rising in most of the countries despite rapid (...)
The World Forum of Fisher Peoples’ calls for the immediate release of Mr. Saeed Baloch, General Secretary of the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum

22 January 2016 - by Naseegh Jaffer

Pakistan must release Mr. Saeed Baloch immediately. Mr. Baloch was arrested on 16 January by the Pakistan Rangers, who works under the command of the Pakistan Army Mr. Baloch is a Human Rights activist since the 1980’ies. He was associated with (...)
Unlocking the chains of debt: speakers demand creation of parliamentary debt audit commission

28 September 2015 - by The News

Islamabad: Pakistan’s economy has been paralysed by an unpayable and largely unjust debt burden that is preventing the country from reaching its poverty goals and hindering the development of democracy, says a paper launched by Islamic Relief (...)
MNA propose to establish ’Debt Audit Commission’

28 September 2015 - by The Frontier Post

ISLAMABAD (APP): Speakers at a conference on Wednesday proposed to establish an independent “Debt Audit Commission” for deciding legitimacy of debts acquired by successive governments. Speaking at a “Conference on Pakistan’s National Debt” (...)
Pakistan takes more external loan

3 July 2015 - by Aftab Alexander Mughal

In what is an indication of the government’s inability to introduce promised reforms and address bureaucratic snags, Pakistan has so far received only $4.3 billion – 57% of its annual projections – in foreign economic assistance. Failure or delay (...)
Global Week of Action against Debts and IFIs 2014

Pakistan: Anti-debt campaigners slam IFIs role in enhancing poverty and debt crisis

LAHORE: (PR) “The PML-N government (which claims breaking the begging bowl) is blindly adding to the country’s debt. Pakistan’s total public debt has galloped to US $ 149 billion, of which foreign debt is over US $ 65 billion and domestic debt is (...)
Pakistan

Saudi ’gift’ violates pak law

6 April 2014 - by Abdul Khaliq

Foreign aid is not an odd thing, if there are no strings attached. Pakistan has been receiving tied and untied foreign aid; loans, and grants from various donors ever since its birth. However, the recent massive cash grant of $1.5 billion by the (...)
Pakistan: IMF fresh loan, a recipe to ruin

21 December 2013 - by Abdul Khaliq

Pakistan’s public debt has grown over the last six years at a pace never witnessed in the country’s history. Public debt has grown at an average rate of 21.5 percent per annum from 2008 to 2013 against an average rate of 6.6 percent per annum (...)
Cancel Pakistan’s Debt

1 June 2013 - by Jubilee Debt Campaign

Take action for Pakistan The people of Pakistan have suffered from a crippling debt for 40 years. Please sign this petition to the IMF to cancel Pakistan’s debt!
Pakistan: Debt spiral under PPP Govt.

2 November 2012 - by Abdul Khaliq

When PPP government came into power in 2008, the country’s external debt was $45 billion which has now increased to $61.5 billion Although successive governments in Pakistan have been acquiring foreign loans to meet their financial needs and (...)
Pakistan: Parliamentary Body starts probe into Public Debt since 1985

21 September 2012 - by Abdul Khaliq

On 27 July 2012 the ruling PPP and opposition PML-N in Pakistan’s National Assembly, principally agreed to audit the public debt of Pakistan. National Assembly Speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza approved the formation of the 12-member committee after a (...)
Pakistan Probing for Illegitimate Debt

21 August 2012 - by Madelynne Wager, Mary Donahue

The Pakistan National Assembly reached a historic agreement regarding the need to audit Pakistan’s public debt. Both the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party and the opposition party, Pakistan Muslim League (N), supported the decision to examine the (...)
Pakistan women’s day. Rape victim blaming attitude

9 March 2012 - by Bushra Khaliq

Rape victim blaming has its roots in all societies and causes are surely riddled in the culture. Stigmatization of the rape victim, multiple social and legal inequities and absence of supportive and viable systems enhance the victimization of (...)