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National Assembly Standing Committee members on Planning wanted full autonomy for the famed think tank and research examination, Pakistan Institute for Development Economics (PIDE), to enable it to produce first class economists doing research that had relevance to the real needs of the country.
The PIDE was the first item on the committee's meeting held here on Monday. The committee members expected PIDE to contribute to the development process based in genuine research without replicating theories, which had little relevance to the actual needs of the country.
The occasion for this unusual praise for the PIDE was occasioned by a draft bill that had been earlier approved by the committee, and is now due for passage in the next session of the Assembly. Therefore, the committee allowed the ordinance to be withdrawn for the bill to go to the legislating wing of the Assembly.
However, the NA session expected to be dissolved on November 15 is still in deficit of 48 days for completing its mandated 130 days of sitting. But this is an impossible task considering that only 25 days are now left until that final date.
Chair of the committee, Sardar Bahadur Ahmad Khan said he sincerely believed that research institutions of the country must get a free hand, and PIDE must get this autonomy, so that the research there must correspond to areas of national interest.
Member Brigadier Zulfiquar Dhillon remarked, 'overall economic theories have not worked in Pakistan. PIDE must develop new frontiers of knowledge and develop theories on subjects of importance to the country.' He wanted the institute to research on the work attitudes of the Pakistani nation. 'Our people hardly work for two hours in a day, and even in government offices people worked for only three hours, whiling over the whole day.'
Acting Vice-chancellor of the PIDE, Dr Nausheen Mahmood, informed the committee about PIDE's current research focus on developing strategies and governance; examining human capital, innovation and growth; studying industrial organisation markets; macroeconomics, banking and finance, analysis of agricultural production, markets as well as keeping check on population growth and social dynamics which affected the nation due to increasing population.
About the PhD programme of the institution, which was initiated in 2000, Dr Nausheen observed that doctoral research was strictly in accordance with global economic standards.
The PIDE was doing doctoral level research in public policies; international trade, public finance; agricultural and resource economics; industrial organisation; economics of various institutions; and econometrics. She said the PIDE had 17 faculty members, and it was recognised as the only centre of excellence in Pakistan.
Sardar Bahadur suggested that the PIDE faculty should go round the universalities of the country and try to broaden the mental level of students studying the subject of economics.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2007

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