I recently convened a working group of leading Pakistani development professionals and outside experts at the Global Economic Symposium (GES) to discuss just such this question.

The attached report summarizes the group’s conclusions.

As I have written previously, Pakistan is a country with immense potential as an emerging market. Given different circumstances and different leadership, Pakistan could have developed differently; given different policies now, it could yet transform itself into a vigorous state with a vigorous economy similar to India.

The working group analyzed the major obstacles to the development that Pakistan needs to build prosperity and security, and produced a series of project recommendations for aid agencies. To replicate the financial constraints that those agencies face, it prioritized projects based on a $100 million budget. The net result are six relatively low-cost projects that could start to improve Pakistan’s political economy and inspire similar initiatives.

As this is the one of the two most interesting parts of the report, let me list the projects here: 

The second especially interesting part is the report’s focus on the “governance ecosystem.” The report argues that donors have a better chance to improve a country’s political economy by focusing on this instead of directly trying to improve how the state works. Strengthening the institutions – things like universities, think tanks, rule of law watchdogs, citizen pressure groups, business schools, teacher training colleges, independent monitoring organizations, and civil service academies – that strengthen citizens’ ability to manage their own affairs is likely to have the largest impact.

The greater the capacity to run a ministry, to build a company, to provide quality education, to organize NGOs and to hold officials accountable, the more likely it is that those in charge will do better – both because they will be more qualified and because those out of power will have a greater ability to monitor their performance.

Trying to change Pakistan’s political culture and government capacity indirectly stands a much better chance of success than past attempts to deal directly with these issues. Extensive research over the past decade shows how difficult it can be for outsiders to build better state institutions. Donor technical advice and tutoring have generally done little to foster better governance, though part of the problem may be with how the international community itself has attempted to help.

In contrast, building up local institutions that both increases the number of high-quality human resources and enhances the accountability loops that monitor official behavior ought to, over a long enough period, change the dynamics of how the state operates. Such a strategy also works better because it allows local people, who are much more effective in navigating the local terrain, to play leading roles instead of foreigners who often know little about the country.

The report also contains good background information on Pakistan, comparing its situation with other highly populated developing countries in Asia. All are based on ancient civilizations and are in the middle of a decades-long process of modernizing their institutions and economies so as to raise the living standards of their peoples and gain a greater position in the world. All face similar challenges.

I recommend the report to anyone working on Pakistan, governance issues, and fragile states.

AUTHOR: Seth Kaplan
URL: http://www.fragilestates.org
E-MAIL: seth [at] sethkaplan.org

King is alleging the source of recent news reports on a plan that should have remained secret is the Obama White House.

“The administration’s leaks must stop before they further endanger the lives of men and women sent into harm’s way on our nation’s behalf,” stated Rep. King.

“To me, all the evidence points towards the White House, and that compromises us because there were two other major allies involved with us in that, and there are tremendous hard feelings and a sense of betrayal from them,” King said on Fox News.

News reports appeared in newspapers and aired in broadcast news stories on Thursday and Friday saying the President gave the go-ahead to provide Syrian rebels with “non-lethal” aid.

For example, Reuters reported that a U.S.-supported “secret command center” against the Assad regime is located in Adana, Turkey. The story is proof that the Obama administration has a serious problem with keeping secrets secret, said King.

In response to these latest leaks, King immediately wrote a memorandum to Robert Mueller, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, requesting that the FBI special agents already investigating security leaks add these new reports to their probe.

“These reported disclosures represent additional disturbing and irresponsible leaks of potentially classified information from this Administration,” King stated in his letter to Mueller. “Obviously, the ongoing investigations have failed to deter further leaks.”

King stated on Fox News: “The only thing I can think of this is an attempt to rehabilitate the president going into an election year to show that he’s a tough guy. The president deserves credit for killing Osama bin Laden, but at that time they went beyond anything that had to be disclosed. I think it’s to enhance his reputation and it’s done in an irresponsible way.”

“This series of leaks — going back to when the Navy SEALs killed the world’s number one terrorist leader, Osama bin Laden — is by far more serious than the media circus of the Valerie Plame-CIA incident that forced the Bush administration to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the so-called outing of a CIA officer,” said former NYPD police detective and military intelligence officer Sid Franes.

“And instead of outrage in the White House over these security breaches, all we get is finger-pointing and accusations about an alleged Republican witch hunt,” said Franes.

The Obama administration has been enduring repeated criticism over not aiding the rebels against the corrupt and oppressive Assad regime. “What better way to get positive press than to create a secret plan that shows action on the part of Obama, and then leak it to news reporters who, for the most part, want to see Obama re-elected in November,” said political strategist Mike Baker.

AUTHOR: Jim Kouri
URL: http://www.renewamerica.com/
E-MAIL: COPmagazine [at] aol.com

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: Council on Foreign Relations.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: Why Aid to Africa is Not Working.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: Dead Aid.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: ASAID.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: Aid Effectiveness.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: Dr. Stephen Howes.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: Africa and the Curse of Foreign Aid.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org

Between 2 July – 18 July, NL-Aid is enjoying a summer recess. From 19th July, you can read articles of our authors again. Untill that time, we have selected Youtube videos in which development thinkers are centered. In this episode: The Aid Debate – Oslo Freedom Forum 2011.

AUTHOR: Hans Sluijter
URL: www.NL-Aid.org
E-MAIL: info [at] www.NL-Aid.org