This is apropos aBusiness Recorder op-ed "Pakistan 2050: the future is bright" carried by the newspaper recently. According to the writer, Shabir Ahmed, "India's rise poses strategic challenges that go beyond trade. Already, at over$2 trillion, India's GDP on MER (market exchange rate) basis is eight times ours. By 2050, it is projected to be ten times ours, creating a gap of $25 trillion between the two economies. How well will our defence, foreign, and commercial policies respond to this massive differential?"

No doubt, his is a profound question. Since the days of Rajiv Gandhi and Narasimha Rao, India has embarked on an economic path that has been generally accruing benefits to New Delhi. The previous BJP government led by Atal Behari Vajpayee, for example, successfully averted country's balance of payment default mainly because of resilience of economy. Islamabad, therefore, is required to compete with India in the realm of economic policymaking with a view to putting the country on the path of progress and prosperity. In this regard, a well calibrated approach to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) could help us transform our economy into a competitive one. Although Pakistan will find it extremely difficult to match India's numbers, it needs to embrace the economic models of countries such as Malaysia and Vietnam to imprve its economy in a meaningful manner.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2017