Re: Poverty in Pakistan: A breakdown
zakk, it benefited? sure..but was it significant enough to make that much of a difference? I dont think so. There is something called the will of the people, and their will to succeed, there is something else called proper management by local authorities. Yes, infrastructure and all is important, industry, businesses, schools, colleges, but that was not all built by the federal or even provincial govt. the city and its people had, and have a drive to succeed.
Lastly, it is very amusing when people talk about businesses in Karachi favouring locals for jobs, I mean if you step aside from factors such as local candidates and educational background and all. and you do a comparative study for institutions in other provinces and cities you will see that even after all this alleged favouritism, the workforce in Karachi businesses is the most diverse, same holds true for educational institutions.
There was a study done a while back about student ratios in major Pakistani universities. dunno if it is online, that will give you an insight.
There are plenty of non political businessmen in Karachi, many expats, many locals, I mean one does not have to be a mega industrialist to have an impact, there are many small businesses that contribute to the job market and thus giving ppl a source of income.
other places, and other cities needed to take a page out of karachi's playbook and to strive as a city and as the city dwellers, rather than just whine. The factors that you mentioned were certainly not enough, or the only thing, to account for the growth of the city.