The provincial government of Punjab has decided to cancel six aid MoUs (Memorandum of Understanding) with the United States government to protest over the Abbottabad raid that killed Osama bin Laden. This aid (which was just in the talks, with nothing being finalised) was intended for health, education and waste management projects in the province – all three sectors which are in dire need of funding. According to Rana Sanaullah, Law Minister of Punjab, “We have told their concerned departments about our decision. This is our protest against the Abbottabad incident.”

Yes, because that is exactly how we should lodge our protest – let this affect our future generation of children, millions of which have never stepped inside a classroom and do not even know how to write their own name. In case anyone has already forgotten, an education emergency was declared in the country a little over two months ago. The Education Task Force emphatically declared that education is one of the “most pressing long-term challenges” for our country. That Pakistan “spent 2.5 per cent of its budget on schooling in 2005/2006. It now spends just 1.5 per cent in the areas that need it most.”

Healthcare not just in Punjab, but across the country is in shambles. Women and children from lower-income families are even more vulnerable to infectious diseases and do not have access to proper healthcare or medical facilities, let alone pharmacies that dispense drugs that are not counterfeit or sub-standard.

Maternal healthcare, you ask? “Globally the highest numbers of maternal deaths take place in South Asia at an astounding 35 per cent. According to UNICEF, State of the World’s Children 2009 (SoWC), one in every 89 Pakistani women dies of childbirth related causes compared to one in 8000 in the developed world.” Women in Pakistan, especially in the rural areas depend on dais or mid-wives, most of whom have no formal training except that of trial and error.

The rate of stillborn infants in Pakistan is currently the second highest in the world. Do keep in mind that there exist effective methods which can reduce this number by at least half, and this would include educating women on pregnancy and childcare in addition to health facilities.

As for waste management, just the city of Rawalpindi generates around 800 tons of waste daily. Do the math for waste produced in the rest of the province and you get the picture; tons of waste that could have easily been used to generate fuel and energy, at the very least.

Shahbaz Sharif claims that the focus should be on improving trade instead of waiting for handouts. When put that way, it certainly sounds very nationalistic and appeals to the masses who do not understand the intricacies of aid agreements or development, for that matter. If we were to really break out of the cycle of debt and improve our financial standing, we will have to reject policies and aid packages given by the IMF and World Bank that always push for austerity measures in developing countries.

Although the above-cited examples are for the entire country, keep in mind that Punjab is the largest and most populated province in the country. Even though the aid would have benefitted just a few thousand, it would have been a few thousand less who are deprived of education and healthcare in our teeming population. Sitting perched high on their moral ground, this decision taken by the provincial government will affect thousands of those who clearly do not care about violation of sovereignty or what mysterious dealings take place in the corridors of power – they merely care about putting food on the table and about rising costs. Public posturing and pandering to the nation’s patriotism will only deflect from the real issues at hand.

Senator Pervaiz Rasheed, Punjab government spokesman, stated that the government was willing to take only those loads and grants that do not come with strings attached. “The projects in southern Punjab will not be halted. The government will instead arrange for funds for the projects through local resources.” Whether or not this actually comes through remains to be seen. But given our past record with empty words and false promises, I wouldn’t hold my breath.

 

Amna Khalique is the Features Editor at Dawn.com

The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.