Political Instability in Pakistan: Blow To Economy & Telecom

Published by Babar Bhatti on November 7, 2007 09:21 pm under Business, Economy, Foreign Investment, Pakistan, Telecommunications, blogging

Of course there are much bigger things at stake for Pakistan at this time than telecom but the impact to economy cannot be taken lightly. We have been discussing and writing about the progress and the potential of telecom industry and about foreign investment in Pakistan. The political crisis changes everything. This graphic from WSJ presents a good snapshot of the situation. What are the implications of this crisis?

First, the damage to the overall business and economy - of which telecom is a major part - is deep. The extent of recovery will depend on the resilience of the nation and the duration of the conflict. Now this turmoil has the potential to erode the progress in telecom and other sectors which the government likes to mention so often. Second, it is important to not get distracted and keep focus on the real issues (respect for rule of law and human rights). Third, keep the actions of individuals separate from the sentiments displayed by the majority of the nation, as aptly pointed out by Adil Najam. For me this struggle is about following the right path to achieve the right goals and not sacrificing principals for short-term and dubious reasons.

Bloggers have taken a lead role at reporting the situation. International media has mentioned that it is very hard to get information from Pakistan and outlets such as CNN are relying on bloggers to share information with them. WSJ mentioned many bloggers in another article today (see below).

For those who would like to know more about the current situation here are some links from Pakistani bloggers.