MOAZZAM KHAN DURRANI
After sudden eruption of pandemic, a debate of ventilators and personal protective equipment came in the circle of media.
The outbreak emerged from the Chinese city Wuhan later last year, shaking health structure in all the corners of the map.
More than 378,181 people have died so far from the coronavirus, COVID-19 outbreak as of June 02, 2020. There are currently 6,405,681 confirmed cases in 213 countries. In Pakistan more than 76,000 people have been infected with the virus which has taken 1600 lives in the country so far.
Pakistan is a third world, developing country where health structure is already delicate. From the birth, it faced many challenges which hindered its infrastructure to grow.
Pakistan’s health budget was Rs. 13.376 billion for the fiscal year 2019-20 which is Rs11.65 billion less as compared to the budgetary allocations made in 2018-19. The allocated budget was to spend on 32 new and 13 previous projects in the country. Also, there was some budget allocated to ‘Sehat Insaaf card’, a scheme for Prime Minister Imran Khan to provide health facility to the people below poverty line.
The country which has the population of 220 million had just 3800 ventilators. In a briefing to the parliamentary committee on coronavirus on April 6, Lt Gen Muhammad Afzal, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) chairman said that there are more than 3,800 ventilators in the country of which 2,200 are owned by the public sector.
He has said that around 500 more ventilators would reach the country from China during the same week and another 2,000 will arrive later. The point to ponder is, 2,200 ventilators were owned by the private sector and an atomic power had only 1600 ventilators for its more than 220 million people in the public sector. Several reports said some three or four districts in Sindh collectively have a single ventilator.
Pakistan is the only country in the world to cut funding for research and development after 2007 from 0.67pc of GDP to 0.24pc. Prime Minister Imran Khan also divulged lack in progress towards knowledge-based economy and research last week.
He asked a country which could make an atom bomb, how is it possible it couldn’t make ventilators. He stated, “We have a dependency syndrome; we don’t have the self-belief; we didn’t progress towards a knowledge-based economy because we didn’t spend on education and research. Pakistanis excel once they immigrate; why can’t you create that system here?”
After more than half a century, it seems Pakistan could not be able to spend much capital on its infrastructure, apparently because of its geopolitical problems or its geographical location. Pakistan is in a geographical location where it always maintained a pivoted position in geopolitical dynamism. As Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah in his maiden interview to an American Journalist prophetically asserted with his characteristic clarity and conviction, “Pakistan is the pivot of the world, placed on the frontier on which the future position of the world revolves”.
Unfortunately, even after a lapse of seven decades, Pakistan could not capitalise on its geostrategic position despite being an active participant in all the major politico-strategic events during these years. Historically, Pakistan has more often found its geographical location to be a liability and a curse rather than an asset.
Pakistan is surrounded by the countries which had proved to be a liability for it rather than a friend except China. Both of its Eastern and Western frontiers remained always volatile intermittently with cross border violations, encouraging liberation leagues (BLA and PTM), and promoting insurgencies such as through sending Kulbushan Yadav – an Indian Naval officer caught spying from Baluchistan.
Equally important, Pakistan was drenched into the war on terror after 9/11 which made it to lose more than 80,000 civilians and military persons. Pakistan also lost billions of Dollars in the war of others. Apparently, US had 9/11 once in a history but Pakistan faced its impacts for two decades.
Under such circumstances, Pakistan remained devoid in boosting its basis. Pakistan spends a part of its budget on defence. As compared to the health budget, allocation for defence projects is far higher. In the FY-2019, Pakistan had allocated PKR 1.15 trillion for defence which is 3 percent of the GDP.
Covid-19 crisis teaches us the worth of understanding of the right time for decisions. We were lacking behind because of our indecisive and untimely decisions. Pakistan spends a part of its budget buying weapons, and armaments. On a way forward, the country must draw a concentration line defining what is urgent and what is important.
Sometimes it may be important but not urgent as our roads and metros. Equally likely, sometimes it is urgent and important too which is to build hospitals, schools etc. Unfortunately, we went to fulfill the desires of the world but in return we could not gather anything for our masses.
(The writer can be reached at moazzamdurrani@numl.edu.pk)
