All these sectors should come forward at this crucial time of literal survival. They should seize the time to treat this difficulty as an opportunity and should invest back in society directly and indirectly
The banks and industry in any country as a whole are the cause as well as beneficiary of socio-economic stability and prosperity in society. After the industrial revolution and establishment of national and multinational corporations, wealth accumulation in limited hands has been an important manifestation. Corporations through deceptive advertisements seduce and squeeze the citizens in all social strata. For the corporations, industries and businesses, it becomes imperative to reinvest some portion of their profits back to society to ensure that society survives so that a perpetual profit generation is ensured. A stable economy, specifically agriculture, is the backbone of the banking sector.
The modus operandi of reinvestment in society has been camouflaged in the name of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). However, in countries like Pakistan, CSR has been nothing more than a joke where important social issues are ignored, overlooked, and instead only the elite-preferred agendas like supporting selective elite sports such as golf, cricket, and the establishment of recreation facilities and parks in posh areas, etc, drains out most of the funds earmarked in the name of CSR.
In Pakistan, due to a lack of awareness, people so far have not pressed the corporations, banks and industries to fulfil their obligations to society. However, the ongoing devastating calamity — floods — requires them to rise to the occasion and play their much needed role for revamping, rehabilitation and reconstruction of society in general and the economy in particular.
At the moment our whole social infrastructure is in a shambles. From Kalam to Kashmore, Kot Adu to K N Shah, and Thull to Thatta, the floods have pushed the people back to the Stone Age. All the sources of livelihood, i.e. agriculture, livestock, fisheries, tourism, road network, bridges, electricity, communication, schools, mosques, hospitals and dispensaries have either been washed away or rendered worthless by the gushing flood waters.
It will take decades for the complete restructuring of the infrastructure if serious efforts are put in place that are yet to be mobilised. The fragile state institutions, already lacking the capacity to perform in normal circumstances, would neither be expected to perform at their best nor should be blamed as we all have been ruthlessly criticising them for their inefficiency. Should we wait for some divine bounty? International development bodies like the UNDP, USAID, Australian AID, Canadian International Development Agency, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) or charity organisations such as OXFAM, etc, can and have been extending their possible support in relief work. But NGOs cannot be a panacea for this gigantic task that looks almost impossible to tackle in the short term.
Then who should be expected to come forward to initiate and complete the Herculean task of reconstruction would be the million-dollar question. The indigenous approach and finding solutions within would be the only sensible approach for a sustainable solution to all these critical tasks.
Our banks and consumer industries in general have been deplorably passive in responding to the issue of encountering the strategic difficulties of paramount importance.
Barring the contribution of their work forces’ one-day salary, most of the banks have been silent spectators. The same seems to be the role of fast-food chains, five star hotels, the automobile, electronic and consumer industries, pharmaceuticals and fertiliser industries, beverage companies, textile and sugar tycoons, airlines and cellular companies, etc.
All these sectors should come forward at this crucial time of literal survival. They should seize the time to treat this difficulty as an opportunity and should invest back in society directly and indirectly. These companies should at least volunteer to surrender their average one year profit as a contribution for reconstruction. In addition, banks should redesign their financing strategy and half of the advances should be earmarked for the rehabilitation-related projects. Initially, the banks should cater to the requirements of the agriculture sector and should generously invest funds on discounted rates to compensate for the losses that will have a chain reaction on society during the coming days. This should include consideration for livestock and poultry too.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) every year fixes mandatory agriculture credit targets, which banks reluctantly achieve through window dressing and jugglery of the digits. The SBP should fix mandatory agriculture targets three times more than last year and it should strictly monitor implementation in letter and spirit. Otherwise the agriculture growth target at 3.8 percent for 2010 would be impossible to achieve. Banks should design customised advance products, especially flexible loans for construction of small houses, and investment in the health sector through loans to doctors for the establishment of dispensaries and hospitals. There should also be consideration for investment in the education sector with discounted loans to school chains to establish schools in rural areas. Companies interested in construction of bridges and roads should be encouraged and financially supported
The tourism industry desperately requires support and investment. Hotels and infrastructure in Swat and other tourist destinations have been simply wiped out. Banks can either directly invest by establishing hotels, eateries, recreation areas, etc, or they should partner with experienced individuals who lost almost every penny to the hill torrents. If the tourism industry is not revived, millions would be out of work, which is a dangerous indication for social instability
A comprehensive strategy to initiate micro-finance projects in all flood-hit areas to provide individuals with low income loans, especially women, to restart their domestic income generation and earn a livelihood.
Pharmaceutical companies should be pressed to modify their marketing strategy for one year and instead of investing millions of dollars on pleasure trips to seduce doctors, they should pay that amount in kind and should freely provide medicines to the government as well as philanthropists to save the lives of millions of people in need.
Through an effective diplomatic strategy, Pakistan can convince the heads of rich countries in Asia and Europe during the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in October in Brussels and can effectively mobilise affluent philanthropists to support the reconstruction efforts.
In case banks and other industries fail to rise to the occasion, they will be committing a lethal mistake, which will exhaust their resources in the end due to lacklustre economic activity and lifeless human bodies in Pakistan.
The writer holds a master’s degree in social sciences and is a professional trainer, researcher and peace activist. He can be contacted at nizambaloch@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment