This opportunity must not be wasted

With the tribal areas possibly full of resources, and our own economy starting to slow down, providing a secure climate in these mountainous areas could improve the country's investment prospects. As negotiations only give militants more time to rearm, the action must be continued if the government hopes to bring peace and prosperity to the nation.
This will buy the government the time it needs to develop the areas and use public diplomacy to win over the hearts and minds of the people. Additionally, mega-projects in the tribal areas - funded by a combination of foreign governments, our own government, NGOs and the private sector could provide the revitalisation needed to keep the Pakistani economy at large stable during this economic slowdown.
Though Reconstruction Opportunity Zones are already in the offing, time is of the essence in the race to build a viable economy in the region, before militants can build a formidable armoury.
The government must expedite work to explore the potential hydrocarbon reserves within the tribal areas but also improve the lives of the people tangibly. Experts at the University of Peshawar are already hopeful that FATA has huge hydrocarbon reserves and various companies including OGDCL, PPL and ENI Limited have already indicated their possible interest in investing in the region. This could be the fountain of wealth that drenches the tribal areas with investment and opportunities.
In addition to these long-term steps, quick results could also show the people of the tribal areas that the government is serious about helping them now. Building roads and houses, electrifying villages and providing micro-financing in the area will all have realistic effects on the lives of the people, and could also provide the engine for increased growth in our construction, electric and financial industries.
As foreign nations are at least as eager to give economic assistance to the tribal areas as they have been to the rest of the country, these soft loans and grants could contribute more towards efforts against terrorism and extremism than any missile strike.
With the enormous potential the region offers for so many industries, this opportunity is one that must not be wasted - with foreign government willing to donate more and more money, with industries eager to continue business and with a region desperate for development.
The final impetus lies in the simple logic of having the people reject terrorism and deal with it on their own. When the Pakistani government is no longer the force blocking roads and destroying houses, but rather the people re-carpeting the streets and providing housing, then the war on terror will be won.
While allowing time for the much-vaunted development of these areas to take place, the government must also refine and communicate its alternate vision to the people.
The people in the tribal areas can be the most effective tool against terrorism if the government can manage to harness them to work with the government and not against them. To do this, Pakistan must provide the people of FATA a vision of what we hope we can all become - a tolerant, developed and peaceful society - and allow this to compete with the Taliban's view of a society. The writer is as intern at Business Recorder and is currently studying Political Science and History at Tufts University in US.