Trouble at the power plants
In the last few weeks, there have been a slew of reports about plant failures and power assets going offline one after the other...
Where are our cities?
Why do Pakistani official circles still like to maintain Pakistan is a rural country? Every pronouncement of government, at the cabinet table and even...
Let’s take a hard look at Net Metering
The Government of Pakistan had to face tremendous backlash lately regarding imposing a fixed tax on solar panels. On its part, the Government’s intention...
200 million people and zero unicorns
A successful Pakistani Silicon Valley entrepreneur opens up about building
the next great startup in Pakistan
eCommerce Awards 2021 – How, Why & What’s Next
Pakistan’s eCommerce industry is tiny! The global average for eCommerce transactions as a percentage of total retail is in the 15% range (pre-covid). Digital-first...
Climate check: can Pakistan add more cars without impacting the environment?
An influx of 350,000 cars is expected every five years: here’s what we can do about it
Governance system for local governments – Part 1
Devolution, decentralization and financial delegation
Think about energy security
Energy price volatility has shocked and awed the world, unleashing a wave of inflation and pain on hundreds of millions of citizens. While much...
What Shanghai Electric is inheriting from Abraaj
The problem with buying a monopoly is that you never really think about the competition until it is too late. Shanghai Electric’s $1.77 billion...
A guide to ending tax evasion in Pakistan
No issue in Pakistan currently attracts as much attention as that of tax evasion. On one hand, we have the people of Pakistan accusing...
Governance system for local governments – Part 2
Within the political dimension, the provincial governments should devolve the following functions completely to the local governments: one, school education up to matric. Two,...
Are our economic managers flying blind?
The Dismal Science is also an inexact science, yes. But our horrible statistics departments have made it look like astrology
Defining Sethism
Besides the well-understood issues of capital constraints, budget deficits and lack of planning, the economy is chained by Sethism
The start-up culture is causing Pakistanis (& Wapistanis) to dream
Rising inflation, declining foreign reserves, energy shortages, political instability – These headlines make a grim reading for any investor. But in all the negativity...
Beware of Bancassurance
Bank staff prey on the vulnerable, who just want to park their funds in a safe investment product, and only later find out that they are underwater
