‘Aid or Trade’ is a revised edition which presents the panoramic overview of the current economic situation. The significant aspect of this book is that Yusuf Shirazi has taken this overview briefly but lucidly. The book is divided into two parts which make it more comprehending. It gives economic overview of not only our country but also the countries that have been the partners of Pakistan in trade over the years.
The part I of the book contains the economic relationship of Pakistan with the rest of the world. In this part, the author has highlighted issue of balance of trade and its impact on our local market. The part is full of statistics of various trading patterns such as composition of imports and exports. This part describes how Pakistan started its journey and its economy changed over the past six decades. All these facts are extensively supported by graphs, which show how Pakistani trade saw ups and downs under different political regimes. In this section, the most interesting part is a list of conclusions that the author has drawn based on his long experience.
He said that the country could achieve greater self-reliance in terms of financial and material resources by focusing urgently on exploiting natural resources, especially minerals, to expand the country's export base and by diversification of the industrial base to expand the prospects of exports to a much wider global market. He emphasizes on the fact that in the present circumstances when our country is passing through its most difficult times and there is negative perception in the investor fraternity, public-private partnership is imperative for filling the huge gaps in Pakistan's industrial base and its physical infrastructure.
The second part of the book presents the country specific analysis of composition of trade and their trading patterns for the last few decades to give the reader an appreciation as to how the trading relationship have evolved. This section also discusses future strategies with these countries to attain a mutually beneficial trading relationship. It also covers the economies of Britain, China, Germany, India, Japan, Switzerland, and the USA.
It is a wonderful book and is recommended to policy makers, academic, students and all those well wishers who want to see Pakistan becoming socio-economically self-sufficient.
Title: Aid or Trade
Author: Yusuf H Shirazi
Genre: Economy
Pages: 119
Price: Rs595
Publisher: Ferozsons (pvt.) LTD.