Prime Minister Imran Khan has constituted a 13-member National Development Council (NDC) headed by himself, with two full federal ministers (Foreign Affairs and Planning and Development), two advisors (finance and commerce/industries), chief of army staff, any additional minister/head of strategic body who maybe invited, three full secretaries and one additional secretary from the prime minister's office. The provincial chief ministers would attend at special invitation as will the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan. The composition therefore clearly and unambiguously indicates that it is to be a federal effort and provincial ministers would be invited if the subject relates to their provinces specifically. There has been no mention yet on the frequency of the meetings of the NDC and one would hope that at least a quarterly meeting is envisaged.
Two of the four terms of reference of the NDC include formulating policies and strategies for development as well as tailoring policies to achieve accelerated economic growth - elements that are at present being dealt with by the National Economic Council and perhaps during cabinet meetings. Be that as it may, the NDC would provide a forum whereby any policies/strategies under implementation fail to generate the expected results which would, in turn, lead to discussion and implementation on the appropriate mitigating measures which can then be promptly put in place.
However, it would be safe to assume that the remaining two terms of reference of the NDC form its raison d'etre notably approval of long-term planning for national and regional connectivity and to provide guidelines for regional cooperation. In this context, it is relevant to note that the country's armed forces have been proactively engaged in not only providing security to foreign nationals and foreign-funded projects (with the China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects being a major recipient of the armed forces security protection cordon given that the overwhelming majority of foreign investment/assistance inflows has been undertaken by the Chinese in recent years); but in also dealing with terror-related incidents on our large porous eastern and western borders as well periodic violations along the Line of Control (LoC).
If all the four terms of reference are taken in conjunction, the government's rationale for setting up the NDC is clarified. Development (in physical and social infrastructure) and economic growth are from an economic perspective inextricably linked. However, next fiscal year, with a projected loss of the growth momentum as highlighted in the budget documents (at only 2.4 percent) and with financial constraints on the development budget due to resource constraints the government's focus has, advisedly, fallen on the need for greater regional connectivity as well as within the country.
Efforts towards greater regional connectivity in our part of the world, which would have been win-win for all the participating countries, have been held hostage to India's Pakistan-specific (including an effort to counter regional connectivity envisioned under CPEC) and regional hegemonistic designs which have been all the more visible since Narendra Modi ascended to power in 2014. India has signed a three-country memorandum with Iran and Afghanistan committing a minimum of 21 billion dollars as follows: (i) 85 million dollars for Chabahar port which would provide direct access to India's Farkhor Air Base in Tajikistan; (ii) 150 million dollar line of credit to Iran; (iii) 8 billion dollar India-Iran memorandum of understanding for Indian industrial investment in Chabahar Special Economic Zone; (iv) 11-billion dollar Hajigak iron and steel mining project awarded to Indian companies in central Afghanistan; and (v) India's 2 billion dollar commitment to Afghanistan for developing supporting infrastructure. To conclude, the NDC's focus on how to counteract Indian efforts must be appreciated.