President Nancy Birdsall was featured in The Dawn in an article about the Center's new report on Pakistan.
From the Article
The United States needs to substantially revamp its approach to Pakistan, focusing on trade and investment, not aid, says a new study released on Wednesday.
The report by the Centre for Global Development, Washington, also urges the US administration to delay much of its multi-billion-dollar aid to Pakistan because it believes the aid has failed to bring prosperity to the nuclear-armed nation.
Instead, the report advocates providing duty- and quota-free access for all Pakistani exports to the US market for at least five years and to increase incentives for investment in that country.
Suggested incentives include new forms of risk insurance and credit programmes for Pakistan`s small and medium enterprises.
“The United States is way off course in Pakistan,” says CGD president Nancy Birdsall, who convened the study group and is the lead author of the report. “It`s heavily focused on security while neglecting low-cost, low-risk investments in jobs, growth, and the long haul of democracy building.” She also advises “a sense of humility”, acknowledging that “the US can`t accomplish that much. If the Pakistanis aren`t ready politically, we can`t expect miracles overnight”.
The report says that the administration`s integrated “Af-Pak” approach — lumping Pakistan together with Afghanistan — has “muddled” the Pakistan development mission. Similarly, “the integration of development, diplomacy and defence has left the programme without a clear, focused mandate”.