ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Friday stressed the need to refocus the country’s diplomatic initiatives from conventional diplomacy to economic diplomacy to ensure that Pakistan’s development agenda is advanced.
According to him, the basic purpose of foreign diplomacy is not only the protection of national interests, but also help in stimulating economic growth by transforming the potential of the country’s geostrategic position into a geoeconomic one.
Deputy Prime Minister Dar said that Pakistan is at a crossroads and a very important place in the world. Unfortunately, however, he said, “we have failed to streamline and benefit from our position that the Almighty has blessed us with.” He stressed the need for young diplomats to be equipped with the necessary skills to promote trade and investment, tourism and opportunities to explore the workforce.
“Today’s diplomats should not only be experts in international law and politics, but also in economic diplomacy,” he noted.
He also asked the young diplomats to work hard in their careers for the development of the country and said that in order to connect with the world, they should not continue to engage in luxuries.
He also assured his full support in upgrading the infrastructure and improving the functioning of the academy.
The Deputy Prime Minister pointed out that Pakistan has great potential in terms of manpower, resources and economy.
He recalled that in 2013, Pakistan was declared a globally macroeconomically unstable country, a country that was on the verge of insolvency. “It was predicted that it would take at least a decade for Pakistan to come out of the quagmire it faced till 2013,” he said.
But he said what happened in the next 3-4 years reflected the resilience of the country, its economy and its people. In three-and-a-half years, he said, Pakistan had reached a level where it was recognized as the world’s 24th largest economy.
“Pakistan’s economic indicators were the best and probably still unmatched in any era,” he said, adding that the country witnessed the lowest CPI inflation at 3.6% food inflation at 2%, economic growth of over 6%, the best stock market in the south. Asia and 6th best in the world.
But unfortunately, he said, “our foot-dragging and political instability has pushed Pakistan to the 47th global economy in the next four years”.
The Deputy Prime Minister hoped that Pakistan, with nuclear power, great strategic location and vast natural resources worth over $10,000 billion, would one day lead the Muslim Ummah.
