A strategic pathway to Pakistan’s $70 trillion economic future
Converting geopolitical opportunity into Pakistan’s economic turnaround
Pakistan‘s role in mediating the U.S.-Iran conflict has remarkably elevated its diplomatic profile as a country that has resolved the half a century animosity between the two countries. World capitals have applauded Islamabad’s effort leveraging its close ties with both the United States and neighboring Iran.
The highly acclaimed mediation role has put the South Asian country under spotlight with a probing thought: Will Pakistan be able to use the tremendous goodwill into an opportunity to lift the lot of its 230 million people? The question assumes urgency in view of the fact that in the past, Pakistan has wasted multiple opportunities to achieve sustained economic growth.
Amid this crossroads scenario, a Pakistani-American entrepreneur has put forward a bold and transformative proposal that seeks to address the country’s chronic energy crisis and paves the way for an environment to stimulate manufacturing and industrial growth.
Mossadaq Chughtai, whose business ventures span several key areas of the economic landscape, confirmed to Views News Now, when approached that he shared the plan to Pakistani stakeholders in the middle of April of this year in anticipation of international reservoir of goodwill for the country as it hosted the American and Iranian top officials for their first direct meeting since 1979.
“We must strive to convert this geopolitical opportunity into Pakistan’s greatest economic turnaround,” he says.
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So, what is “The Mossadaq Economic Initiative” that he wants Islamabad to follow in order to put Pakistan’s economic house in order and also brighten its growth prospects sustainably?
“I believe Pakistan has been presented with a rare opportunity—one that could take the country to unprecedented heights of growth and development, beyond anything seen in its modern history,” says Chughtai, who is Vice Chairman of KiNRG, an innovative energy company which just acquired a sizable data center construction company in USA to become first one stop shop for data centers and their energy needs in the world.
“If there is one strategic thing Pakistan should ask or pursue, it is the proposed gas pipeline from Iran, entering at the Gabd–Kumb Border Crossing, which is already completed on the Iranian side,” he says, while noting that the removal of sanction on Iran will open up a window for Pakistan to finally address its longstanding energy challenges.
Chughtai says the pipeline project has the “potential to be transformative for Pakistan, provided it is structured with strategic foresight and long-term discipline.”
According to The Mossadaq Economic Initiative, key considerations for Pakistan should include securing a “non-revocable” waiver from the United States for a minimum term of 50 years to enable “uninterrupted imports of natural” gas from Iran.
“I can suggest a detailed mechanism for it.
Establishing a robust pricing agreement with Iran that guarantees a stable long-term pricing structure—ideally at $2.25/MMBTU, with a ceiling of $5.00/MMBTU over a period of at least 50 years.”
As part of holistic Pakistan effort to address the energy challenges the plan envisages implementation of a “disciplined domestic pricing framework that caps consumer and industrial gas prices at no more than 10% above procurement cost of the government.”
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“If executed effectively, such a framework could fundamentally reshape Pakistan’s economic trajectory—sparking manufacturing and industrial growth, catalyzing mid to large-scale manufacturing investment, and increasing exports to the current level of Vietnam within the next five to ten years on an unprecedented scale,” Chughtai outlines in the plan.
The downstream impact of such a comprehensive approach would be creation of more than eleven million new jobs resulting in a massive tax base, sustained GDP growth, and a meaningful uplift in national prosperity over time.
More importantly, establishing new, modern manufacturing plants across all critical sectors would naturally accelerate the transfer of advanced technologies to the country, addressing a gap that Pakistan has faced for more than five decades versus its neighboring countries especially, India, the plan says.
“This could become one of the most significant steps undertaken by Pakistan’s establishment leadership—one that has the potential to usher the country into a new era of industrialization, strengthen its economic foundation, and enhance its long-term resilience well into the next century, resulting an impact of more than $70 Trillion for Pakistan over the time period of this agreement.”
In view of the risks to supply chains and instability — as highlighted by recent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East — The Mossadaq Economic Initiative looks a realistic option for the country that needs to sort out its energy woes as the foremost step towards economic stability and sustained high growth for many decades to come.
Muhammad Luqman is Associate Editor at Views News Now. He writes on wide-ranging issues including economy, South Asia, the Middle East, agriculture, economy and innovation. Luqman has worked some of the leading news organizations and won acclaim for his original and research-based works.
