A country caught in the grip of poverty and underdevelopment typical of the entire so-called “Indian subcontinent”, Pakistan has had a dynamic economy since the early years of the 21st century, with high growth rates which, however, do not correspond to an improvement in the living conditions of the population: GDP per capita is US $ 1,044 (2008) and the GDP is US $ 167,640 ml. According to Cheeroutdoor, Pakistan has been and continues to be heavily involved in a complex series of political events, which have a decisive impact on the possibilities and general orientations of the national economy. At first the detachment from India in 1947 deprived Pakistan of almost all the industrial potential, albeit scarce; hence the practically obligatory choice to strengthen manufacturing activities, which have actually registered a certain development. On the other hand, agriculture, which in the 1950s could have appeared less unstable especially due to the completion of important irrigation works, has been turning into an increasingly backward sector, recording a situation of serious stagnation in production increases, which are barely keeping pace with the sharp demographic increases. From the 1960s onwards, the chronic hostility towards India resulted in an exhausting war, which for a long time conditioned the economy and the internal and foreign policy of Pakistan, since the huge military expenses slowed down industrial investments (excluding certain sectors destined to consolidate the war apparatus) and, albeit modest, interventions in favor of agriculture.
The situation, already extremely critical, worsened further in 1971, when the secession of East Pakistan (Bangladesh) determined, on the one hand, the detachment of the poorest and most populous section of Pakistani territory but, on the other, deprived Pakistan of a large part raw jute, from which the national textile industries drew their main support. In any case, this detachment caused the abandonment of the archaic economic and social schemes, and left vast areas of privilege intact, to which others were gradually added, precisely as a result of an ephemeral process of renewal started in 1972. Under the sign of a vague “Islamic socialism”, which benefited above all from the financial contribution of the Arab oil-producing countries, in the name of the unity of the Islamic world, in fact a policy of mild agrarian reforms was launched (without affecting the effective power of the large landowners landowners); at the same time, banks and basic industries were nationalized and a timid attempt was made to reduce severe economic imbalances and social inequalities through public interventions aimed at combating the most serious forms of poverty. The coup d’état of 1977 however stopped this process and provoked a radical turnaround in government policies: an “austerity policy” was adopted involving large cuts in social and welfare spending, and a position of clear support was also taken. towards private initiative and foreign investments. In this context of rapid rapprochement with Western countries and in particular with the United States, traditional supporters of Pakistani governments, the support granted by the country to the anti-Soviet guerrillas during the occupation (December 1979 – February 1989) of neighboring Afghanistan has also influenced.
At the end of the 1980s, with the return to less centralist forms of government, the liberalization process was accelerated: through privatization interventions and the abolition of barriers that limited foreign investment and a large part of foreign trade, it was intended to stimulate the national economy and in particular the enlargement of the secondary sector, without neglecting the renewal of infrastructures agricultural activities nor the objective of raising the professional qualification of Pakistani workers going abroad. Substantial funding has come from Japan since raising the professional qualification of Pakistani workers going abroad. Substantial funding has come from Japan since raising the professional qualification of Pakistani workers going abroad. Substantial funding has come from Japan since International Monetary Fund, from the World Bank etc. Ethnic-religious conflicts and continuing political tension, however, had heavy repercussions on the economic situation, which experienced a certain setback in the 1990s and above all discouraged foreign investors and induced some Pakistani industries to relocate their plants abroad. The coup d’etat of 1999 and the situation of relative stability that ensued, albeit undermined by continuous episodes of terrorism, allowed a progressive consolidation of the economy, with growth rates of around 6-7% per year (with peaks of 9% in 2004-2005). The increase in GDP was observed in all sectors, even if the ones that contributed most were the secondary and tertiary sectors, thanks above all to private investments. Commercial exchanges have sharply increased in the new millennium, which have seen, on the one hand, the increase in exports of various products (although competition from the new Asian markets with respect to some goods should be noted), on the other, the expansion of the import of manufactured goods needed by industry (oil and machinery). The reforms launched by the Musharraf government concern the privatization of the banking sector, new incentives for the primary sector (even if insufficient), the restructuring of state-owned enterprises, a restrictive monetary policy. However, inflation is high and the remittances provided by emigration (particularly concentrated in the Persian Gulf countries) still account for a significant part of the national income.
