PRESIDENT MUSHARAF'S VISION OF PAKISTAN

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President's Vision of Pakistan



The President initiated the process of turning his vision into reality when he gave the nation the following seven point agenda:

Rebuild National confidence and morale
Strengthen the Federation, remove inter-provincial disharmony and restore National cohesion
Revive the economy and restore investor confidence
Ensure law and order and dispense speedy justice
Depoliticize State institutions
Devolution of power to the grass-roots level
Ensure swift and across the board accountability

In an effort to drive maximum focus from the seven points, a four point strategy was later developed. The idea was to concentrate, prioritize and accomplish tangibles. The key goals were:

Economic revival
Poverty alleviation
Political restructuring
Devolution of power to grass root
On each one of there we have seen tremendous forward movement.

The President strongly feels that in order to attain the objective of becoming a mature, moderate and tolerant society, Pakistan has to rid itself from the elements spreading religious extremism and ethnic hatred. The President is firmly committed to root out terrorism in all its forms and manifestations from Pakistan. While evolution of a moral and ethical society, strong in religious and cultural values shall remain the nation's cherished goal, he believes that extremism and sectarian violence by a fringe have to be rooted out from our society. The minority cannot be allowed to hold the majority hostage.

The President considers that a progressive and prosperous society is directly linked with a dynamic, robust and resilient economy. He, therefore, sees Pakistan as a strong, vibrant economy, growing at an average rate of 7 to 8% over the next decade. In order to meet this target, he initially, through singular focus and by following a definite strategy, concentrated on removing the weaknesses of Pakistan's economy. The problems of growing debt, rising corruption, sliding confidence of the business community and prospective investors and eroding credibility of vital State institutions have now been addressed with encouraging results. With economic stability and wide ranging reforms, Pakistan now looks ahead towards self-reliant growth, which directly impacts poverty reduction. The President has identified agriculture, small and medium enterprises, housing and construction, oil and gas, information technology, tourism and telecommunications to play a pivotal role in the envisaged growth.

Around 70% of Pakistan's population lives in rural areas with their livelihood dependent on agriculture. Irrigated agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan's economy but water is becoming a limiting factor on cropping area. Pakistan also has the additional potential of bringing about 22.5 million acres of virgin land under cultivation if irrigation water is made available. The President has, therefore, designated construction of medium and large reservoirs, canals and brick-lining of watercourses, for maximum water conservation, a foremost National priority.

The President envisions the distinct roles and realms of government and the private sector. He strongly believes that the private sector is not only the main engine of growth but also the primary source of employment generation. To him, the private sector can produce, distribute and trade goods and services more efficiently and at a lower cost than the government. The government's role should only be in facilitating and creating an environment conducive for the private sector to flourish. The President is, therefore, committed to the vigorous pursuit of the privatization policy.

The President views Human Resource Development as an imperative for socio-economic development. According to him, no nation can effectively progress without a strong human capital base and education is central to overall Human Resource Development. His holistic approach aims at enhancing literacy levels, improving quality of primary and secondary education and also giving a major boost to the quality of higher education. He targets 60 % literacy level by 2005 and over 90% by 2015 and producing 1,500 Ph.Ds each year, mainly in science subjects by 2009. The present percentage of students entering higher education is to be enhanced from 2.6% to 5 % by 2009.

The cause of gender equity is very close to the President's heart. He firmly believes that the route to women's emancipation is through political empowerment. Therefore, a series of concrete measures were taken to ensure adequate and effective representation of women in the National decision-making institutions. Their representation in local government bodies has been increased to a minimum of 33% of the total seats. It is minimum, because women are at liberty to contest elections for general seats as well. In the Senate, the National Assembly and Provincial Assemblies, women have been guaranteed strong representation by reserving 17% of the total seats for them. This, of course, is a quantum leap from the zero level of the past. With this initiative, over 40,000 women have been politically empowered through the electoral process.

Being a person who loves peace, the President has shown his predisposition to dialogue over confrontation and finding just solutions to international disputes in accordance with UN resolutions. His landmark strategy of Enlightened Moderation is reflective of his efforts to promote global peace and stability. The two-pronged strategy on the one hand induces Ummah to introspect and address their deficits in social and economic standards and on the other solicits from international community rejection of misperceptions about Islam and the thesis of clash of civilizations. He feels that the developed world should not only support Muslims in their efforts for socio-economic uplift but also help resolve international political disputes in a fair and equitable manner.

Under President General Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan has emerged as a responsible and dignified member in the comity of nations. Pakistan has shown unflinching commitment in discharging its international responsibilities. The foreign policy has been based on well-established and recognized principles of international relations, reflecting the country's Islamic character. The President strongly desires Pakistan to have friendly relations with all countries, especially, its neighbors.

Pakistan always had the human and natural resources but its leadership lacked the will and sincerity of purpose. Under the leadership of the President, the country has found the will, the good intentions, and the resolve. By the grace of Allah, Pakistan now stands well positioned to take giant strides towards social and economic development.









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On shedding the military uniform or not, I will take a decision according to the constitution. If there is need for my (being in) uniform, I will take a decision at that time. President Musharraf
Sep 6, 2004

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