Poverty, conflict and humanity
Regional and global organisations hold conferences and special sessions every year to ponder over factors contributing to poverty across the world. Politicians and members of the global elite make solemn…
Four plays in review
The Arts Council, Karachi that Ahmed Shah has been leading for over a decade now, has become the most dynamic centre of art and culture in Pakistan. He has assembled…
Sino-US competition
THE US is cautiously rebuilding its relationship with Pakistan, focusing on critical areas and communities considered vulnerable. The recent visit by US Ambassador Donald Blome to Gwadar is an indication…
Migration crisis
MIGRATION has been in the media and policy spotlight lately. Several international migration-related developments have refocused attention on migration and asylum issues. Recently, the small Italian town of Lampedusa received…
A billion Indians minus the four
ELECTIONS are underway in five Indian states. The BJP lost all five last time, though it has created the impression that it won the round hands down. Many see the…
A beacon of hope?
GWADAR, a small fishermen’s town of 130,000, has become an iconic name ever since CPEC was launched as a flagship project of China’s multibillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative. The Creator…
Turn it on again
ABOUT a fortnight before the US presidential elections in 2016, I attended a talk at a university in Chicago featuring New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd and former Obama adviser…
Ranking Karachi
THE Economist Intelligence Unit’s rating of Karachi as one of the world’s least livable cities is not surprising. Five categories were reviewed to arrive at this conclusion: stability, healthcare, education,…
Reach the masses
RECENTLY, I attended the Urban Resource Centre’s Forum on the urban poor and land use management in Karachi. NED University’s Prof Noman Ahmed spoke on the subject. This was followed…
Four key trends
IN my last piece, I wrote about instability caused by states that do not respond to or reshape new demands and pressures from society. The most relevant example from Pakistan…
