In defence of a new court
Constitutional courts exist in both common law and civil law countries, though they take different forms. In civil law countries, these courts are typically separate, specialized institutions, while in common…
Climate-proofing the treaty
CLIMATIC change has created many new issues for India-Pakistan water relations, and they go beyond the scope of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT). These issues reflect an epochal shift in…
Fixing the IPPs
VISITING Islamabad with my grandchildren, I decided to introduce them to our very impressive Islamabad Sports Complex. Getting there, we found that the Asian Junior Individual Squash Championship was going…
The constitution is important
The tragedy of our time is that the social contract between citizens and the state (in the form of the constitution) in Pakistan is corrupted with malaise and malpractices. Throughout…
Provincial surplus and the federal budget
To formulate federal and provincial budgets necessitates engagement between the federal government and its federating units on two critical items: projected share of each province from the divisible pool and…
Budgets 2024: thinking afresh
“Simplify taxes, reduce the cost of excessive documentation, open the economy for higher growth and employment, taxes too will increase”—Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) Policy Viewpoint [16:2020] Doing Taxes…
Making the NFC work
The recent demands from multilateral institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank to revisit the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award have ignited a fresh debate on resource distribution…
Pakistan’s carbon trade test
The European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is poised to reshape its international trade dynamics by introducing a carbon price on imports of specific goods. This measure is designed…
The NFC debate
Once again there is debate surrounding the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, driven by short-term fiscal concerns and external pressures. It is important to acknowledge the pivotal role the NFC…
NFC and fiscal equity
Initiated by the centre and fiercely contested by the provinces, the reallocation of the NFC comes under debate each time the annual budget is due or when a new federal…
