Rethinking Pakistan’s FDI obsession
Note: This article was originally published in The Express Tribune ISLAMABAD: Many economists love quoting the declining or rising figures of the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) coming to Pakistan. Not only do our governments boast about increasing FDI, but the commentators also appreciate it as an important gain. The SBP regularly updates the figures. Their fascination with FDI appears, if not like a panacea, certainly as a major breakthrough in achieving a faster growth rate or economic development. The April 23, 2024, newspapers published a story based on the SBP data highlighting an increase in the FDI. One newspaper, Dawn,