MDG in Pakistan and how it affects the economy According to the introduction to Global Politics by Steven L. Lamy the adoption of the Millennium Developmental Goals framework has also helped country field staff achieve a more coherent approach to development. In my paper I am going to talk about the MDG’S in Pakistan and how the country is affected politically, economically and other ways as well.
Pakistan not only represents freedom and independence but also is known to be the land of the pure. The region has landscapes that vary from plains, and deserts, to forests, and hills.
Pakistan is divided into three major geographic areas: the northern highlands, the Indus River, and the sistan basin. “In the northern highlands, the second highest peak in the world is found here 8,611 meters.”(1) Cultivation is scarce in the northern mountains, but much of Pakistan's land area has the potential for intensive agricultural. In the Indus plain, the name Indus Means Ocean, the Indus, one of the immense rivers of the world, rises in Tibet. The Indus River basin is a large, productive plain formed by silt. Agricultural civilizations had been around this area for at least 5,000 years. (5) Pakistan is able to feed its population under usual climatic conditions, in the Indus river area due to fertile soil. (6) Pakistan has two major river dams: the Tarbela Dam on the Indus, and the Mangla Dam on the Jhelum. (7) These dams are important to the national economy and helped calm the flood that damaged areas in the northern highlands and the Punjab plains. (7) Sistan basin is located in the region between Southwest, Central, and South Asia. The population is very low due to the mountain area and scarcity of water. (1)
Pakistanis government has improved with the policies over the past decade and made Pakistan a net exporter of guar products, tobacco, cotton, and rice. Other major agricultural exports through the Indus basin include millet, barley, sesame, flax, groundnuts, mangoes, citrus fruits, vegetables molasses, guar products, and tobacco. When it comes to the numbers, “Principal crops with 1999 output were wheat, 17,790; sugarcane, 53,104; and rice, 6,900. Production of sunflower seed amounted to 120 tons in 1999.”(10) The greatest impact on agriculture came from the Indus basin irrigation schemes, one of the largest irrigated networks in the world. The availability of water has increased the use of fertilizers occurring in cotton production. One of the biggest imports through out the Indus River today would be oil. “Pakistan has extensive energy resources, including fairly sizable natural gas reserves, some proven oil reserves, coal and a large hydropower potential.”(11) A shortage of capital and domestic political constraints is the reason why energy resources were slow. The need to import oil has contributed to Pakistan's trade deficits and past shortages of foreign exchange. Other major import commodities of Pakistan are petroleum, machinery, plastic, edible oils, tea, iron, and lastly steel, Pakistan import partners are china, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the US. China gains the most money, making 14.3 billion dollars a year and the US with the least 4.8 billion. Different countries trade with Pakistan in what benefits them the most, the main contributions of the trade being made is the economic development it brings to Pakistan. (12)
As for the climate of Pakistan it varies from tropical to temperate. “Pakistan has four seasons: a cool, dry winter marked by mild temperatures from December through
February; a hot, dry spring from March through May; the summer rainy season, from June through September.”(8) These seasons differ according to location. The climate in the capital varies from an average low of “2 °C in January to an average daily high of 40 °C in June.”(8) Rainfall occurs in July and August, for half of the year; they receive about 10 inches to over 150 inches a year, in different parts of the nation. Areas in Punjab experience easygoing winters, dealing with rainfall, “By mid-February the temperatures rise and during springtime the weather continues until mid-April.”(8) The geography and climate affect Pakistan because most of the modern technological advanced people are in center or south Pakistan for the warmth but the heat effects them like crazy. Also Pakistan has electrical problem and mad people get sick from the electricity going out and they don't have ac. The north where there's snow and ice on the mountaintops isn't really populated being that it's cold and it's hard to make successful and prospering societies in a cold region with no agriculture or way of living. How climate affects the MDG’s in Pakistan, by changing poverty reduction. Developing countries will bear three-quarters of the negative impact of changing weather patterns, water shortages, and rising sea levels, and they are the least equipped to deal with them. Which increases the poverty level.
The Millennium Development goals are the centerpiece of development efforts of the Government of Pakistan. According to undp.org “The 18 global targets and 48 indicators adopted in 2000 have been translated into 16 national targets and 37 indicators keeping in view Pakistan’s specific conditions, priorities, data availability and institutional capacity.” How it works is that the MDGs have been intertwined into the Government’s two important macroeconomic works including “the Medium Term Development Framework (MTDF), which covers a five-year period from 2005-2010 and the Government’s key planning document on development. The other is the Poverty
Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), which is a framework for social and economic policies.”(2) Poverty has been an increased issue for developmental policy of Pakistan, it disadvantages households and make them depend on the government. Steady improvement has been made towards most of the MDGs in Pakistan since 2000. Although they started low and had a slow progress during the 1990s mean that many of the MDG targets will be difficult to reach. The Pakistan Government try to keep on achieving these targets, but with other resources and attempt will be needed to give the considerable improvements needed. (4) When it comes to poverty and hunger, the Pakistan Income increased during the 1990s, but has decreased recently. If the inclination can be continued Pakistan will reach the MDG target by 2015. “The proportion of the population living below the national poverty line decreased from 34.5% in 2001 to 24% in 2004/52. Real GDP growth averaged 6% during this period; consumption inequality increased although remains relatively low. The proportion living below the international $1 a day was estimated to be 17% in 2002.”(4) According to the UN.sats.un.org 37.8% of children under the age of 5 were severely underweight in the year 2002. According to webarchive.gov the education level in Pakistan dealing with Primary school enrolment rates have improved recently. “There are now 3 million more children in primary school compared to 2001. In 2005/06 53% of 5-9 year olds was in primary school, up from 42% in 2001. Poor quality of education, resulting in poor educational outcomes, remains a key constraint to progress.”(4) As for the health rates in Pakistan, Pakistan has the sixth highest rate of TB disease in the world, while cure rates have improved since 2000, and targets to meet for 2011 “Polio is almost eradicated although a few isolated cases remain; 39 cases were reported in 2006, up slightly from 28 in 2005. There are around half a million cases of malaria a year. HIV/AIDS prevalence is low among the general population.”(4) Even the UN puts Pakistan as an elevated country for the spread of HIV/AIDS. In the environmental sustainability, Pakistan barely has access to safe water over the years. Pakistan is still on track to improving water and sanitation by 2015. In 2005/06 “66% had access to a tap or hand water pump and 60% had access to a flush toilet?”(4) Trying to make sure environmental sustainability has varied. Human security is “the security of people including their physical safety, their economic and social well-being, respect for their dignity, and the protection of their human rights.” (14) The broader view of human security includes “food security, adequate shelter, security from poverty, and sometimes from “threats to human dignity”. (9) Its proponents rightly argue that hunger, disease, and natural disasters kill far more people than war, genocide, and terrorism combined. While humanitarian measures taken together do provide an elaborate framework for some kind of goal governance, they are at times taken for granted. (14) The security situation in Pakistan is intricate and comprised dealing with different conflicts. The Pakistan Conflict Monitor summarizes news, and researches the political violence occurring in the country. “Pakistan’s top military brass have indicated that they are likely to spend the bulk of the new budgetary allocation on pursuing their strategy of developing defensive capabilities and strategic depth rather than on fighting the growing militant insurgency inside their own borders." (9) There are seven types of security economic, food, health, environmental, personal, community, and political. Pakistan is striving to gain it all. The relationship between International Allies and Pakistan has strengthened over the last decade. Over the last few years developmental help has been rising and Developmental agencies are increasing their company in Pakistan. (4)
When it comes to the anti-terrorism war that the US is pursuing in the country. It affects the realization of the MDG’s simply because the war on terror has strengthen and empower Pakistan and improve their capacity for service delivery. "On economic front, we are fixing imbalances in agricultural production, exports, trade balance and budget deficit.”(13) On the political side, the government's message for compromise has opened doors for communication and dialogue between all bordering neighbors; which should help increase the millennium developmental goals for Pakistan. The MDG summit given by the UN primarily aims to accelerate the progress towards the MDGs by 2015, taking into account the progress made towards the internationally agreed development goals. “The summit is expected to undertake a comprehensive review of successes, best practices and lessons learned, obstacles and gaps, challenges and opportunities, leading to concrete strategies for action.”(15) In terms of the MDG the Government of Pakistan at the UN MDG summit, admitted that none of the MDGs is likely to be achieved by 2015, the cut-off year for the realization of the Millennium Development Goals. The Pakistan MDG Review Report 2010 prepared by the Government of Pakistan explicitly indicates that the main target for under-five mortality and immunization were unlikely to be met while with reference to improving maternal health, it was admitted that “many of the specific targets for goal five will not be met in the immediate future”. (15) In my opinion, I believe there is little chance of Pakistan achieving it’s goal because by the rate the country is moving as of now I do not see it happening any time soon, they haven’t been able to do full justice to the nation.
In conclusion, Pakistan has been affected by its geography and climate in Differential ways. Pakistan has grown over the years from importing and exporting with developed countries but do I believe they will improve on their MDG goals? No I do not. However I did enjoy researching about Pakistan overall and do wish the best in their future objectives.

Citation page

1. Khan, fazile karim. Geography of Pakistan: environment, people, and economy. Print.

2. “United nation development program." N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2010. <http://undp.org.pk/mdgs-in-pakistan.html>.
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7. "Lake & Dams in Pakistan." N.P., n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2010. <http://www.cybercity-online.net/pakistan/html/lake___dams_in_pakistan.html
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9. "New Threats to Global Security but Long-Term Trends Encouraging: Report." N.P., n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2010. <http://www.pakistanconflictmonitor.org/>.
10. "Pakistan-agriculture." N.P., n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2010. <http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Pakistan AGRICULTURE.html#ixzz17SqIqrSh-10>.
11. "Economics of Pakistan." N.P., n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2010. <http://www.friendsmania.net/forum/b-com-part-1-pakistan-studies-notes/27006.htm>.
12. “Pakistan Trade, Exports and Imports." N.P., n.d. Web. 1 Dec 2010. <http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/pakistan/export-import.html>. 13. Rehman, sherry. (2008, October 6). Ministry of information and broadcasting press release. Retrieved from http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search? Q=cache: 85jUapKs8rgJ:www.pppusa.org/PPPCIS.htm+anti-terrorism+war+that+the+US+is+pursuing+in+pakistan, +affect+the+realization+of+the+MDGs%3F&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=safari&source=www.google.com
14. Lamy, Steven L. (2011). Introduction to global politics. New York, New York: oxford university press.

15. Why the mdg summit is important for Pakistan. (2010, September 22). Retrieved from http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/1765/why-the-mdg-summit-is-important-for-pakistan/