News Desk
ISLAMABAD: Chairman of Senate Defense Committee Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed, while chairing two sessions of the Pakistan International Maritime Expo & Conference (PIMEC) 2023, in Karachi, proposed a 5-point Action Plan to foster Blue Economy.
The senator said apart from Blue Economy, mineral and marine resources, CPEC and building on a strategic partnership between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and China would stimulate an alternative development approach that can help in ‘bid goodbye to IMF’.
Admiral Amjad Khan Niazi, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Faisal Rasul Lodhi, and other senior officers of the Pakistan Navy, along with representatives of fifty countries, participating in PIMEC, were also present.
Outlining his presentation, Senator Mushahid Hussain said that it was clear that Pakistan was on the wrong development path, leaving its autonomy of action and only increasing permanent dependency on the International Monetary Fund since economic independence is the material basis of political independence,” he believed.
He added, “What kind of economic strategy is this that we seek loans to return loans while burdening our own people with more taxes and grinding them with inflation?”
He insisted that a course correction on the financial development strategy of Pakistan was urgently required for the sake of the people of the country.
He said the solution is to focus on exploring and exploiting marine resources by devising a strategy as per ‘Blue Economy’, which the World Bank estimates have resources worth at least 100 billion dollars.
He added that 50,000 square kilometers were added to the continental shelf of Pakistan as an exclusive economic zone in 2015, a vast mass of water, almost like a fifth province.
Senator’s 5-point Action Plan for Blue Economy
First, the government should establish a National Authority for Blue Economy to prepare a comprehensive strategy that involves the Pak Navy, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, and the private sector.
Second, the Maritime Affairs ministry should have a Secretary from Pak Navy, like the Ministry of Defense has a Secretary from the Pakistan Army.
Third, a special non-governmental Task Force be established comprising academics, experts, think tanks, and the relevant private sector for making a Work Plan in 2023 to increase awareness about Blue Economy amongst opinion leaders and stakeholders.
Fourth, as part of the alternative financial development strategy for Pakistan, develop a linkage between Blue Economy, marine and mineral resources, CPEC, and TAPI, and develop the triangular relationship between Pakistan, China, and Saudi Arabia.
Fifth, Media Workshops be organized in Gwadar, Ormara, Keti Bandar, and Karachi, so that ‘sea blindness’ ends with an awareness of the future potential of Blue Economy. –APP
