Pakistan needs to learn from China

Privatisation is a unique medicine which international financial institutions (IFIs) carry in their first aid box to prescribe to everyone and anyone. The country in need of help will have to take a dose of it. The extent of the dose depends on the need of the country. Although the
concept was introduced by the fascist regime in Italy, now it is a favourite of capitalist economies and institutions. The first practical intervention on this front was noticed between 1921 and 1925 in Italy. Germany was next on the list. The purpose of these actions was to oblige close groups or friends and create a cult of supporters. The same sentiment echoed during the privatisation process of the UK and France in the 1980s.
Friedrich von Hayek, in his book “Road to Serfdom” in 1944, propagated the concept and brought it into circles of liberal economics and governance. He continued to write in favour of privatisation and argued that it could serve the people better. Milton Friedman and Emanuel Savas strengthened the case of privatisation. Now, it is a buzz word and IFIs deem it as a necessity to solve problems of poor
countries and give a boost to economic growth and development. Although it has failed in multiple countries, still IFIs are pursuing it with full vigour. Pakistan presents a very interesting story of privatisation and working with the IFIs. Pakistan has been a permanent client of the IFIs for decades but the interaction grew in the late 1980s. IFIs put Pakistan on the course of reform, better governance and privatisation to bring positive change. Unfortunately, its performance started deteriorating with the passage of time. Now, Pakistan is in hot pursuit of financial resources to pay interest on a huge pile of loans, leave aside the payment of principal loans. If China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is removed, all economic indicators portray a dismal picture over the
past decade.