Indigenous manufacturing is the only recipe to prosper, says Samir Hoodbhoy Taking loans is an addiction; we have no way but to correct ourselves

Following the current economic crunch, many people are caught by anxiety about whether Pakistan will be able to survive economically. As everyone knows if God forbids, if it did not, what will happen? Yet, many are hopeful as they believe hope is everything, if lost nothing is left behind. Samir Hoodbhoy, CEO of Data Communication and Control, a known engineering and IT company in Pakistan is among one of them and says I am very much hopeful as Pakistan has a huge number of young people
Samir Hoodbhoy: Self-reliance is a prerequisite without which our economic stability cannot be achieved. Why don’t we rely on our own natural resources rather than importing fossil fuels worth $24 billion? Solar, wind, and hydro kinetic resources are in abundance in Pakistan and we should properly look into our energy policy to tap these resources. We have coal deposits, deserts in Sindh, Punjab, and Balochistan with high solar radiance and wind corridors. As per World Bank data, we have a potential of 40 to 80 GWTs on Hydrokinetic through our irrigation canals. Also, we have a 700 mile long coastline of Sindh and Balochistan that must be tapped.
ER: This data and the resources are no secret but what is the hindrance that we are unable to tap into these resources?
SH: I returned to Pakistan in 1984 after completing my education at Harvard University and then serving several companies abroad. By then Pakistan had already commissioned Steel Mills and after 4 years in 1988, they suddenly woke up that they did not have any drawings at all. Thus, it was a crisis situation, the Ministry of Production issued an advertisement for the work for which no local firm could make a bid, and only foreign firms were declared qualified. I fought against the law which kept Pakistani companies out of the bidding and won the case. I made a company with some friends and succeeded to win the contract. The quotation was worth $23 million but we accomplished the job in just $2.3 million. It was the first high-tech job from any Pakistani company. We picked up the best engineers from NED University and completed the job of building the Central Design Bureau.
ER: Then where did that spirit go? And now again there is widespread talk that only indigenous manufacturing can develop Pakistan. Will this rhetoric sway or vanish like it happens in Pakistan?
SH: Taking loans is an addiction but when we shall experience a leash that is falling on us, we have no way but to correct ourselves. We ought to change our attitude and we shall do it. We have admitted it at all levels now.
When Pakistan became nuclear and faced sanctions, we saw development as we were not getting aid money and even now we have an opportunity. Of all industries including textile, the high-tech industry, the software industry, and alternate energy, the best option is electrical vehicles such as electric rickshaws and buses. We must divert our focus to mass transit. We need 4500 buses that we should make in Pakistan. They should be EVs as they are not complex like combustion engines. The most important part is the battery. We must do it. We shall need ten times more for the whole country.
ER: Where to start?
SH: Start from the areas which are infrastructure-related like water, transportation, energy, urban development, and education. You just need to do minimal things. You don’t have to tax raw materials so that the industry competes with the outside world. For instance, items like computer chips should be exempted from duties.
The landscape in Pakistan has changed, we have hundreds of educational institutions and thousands of IT graduates. We have to channel them; they need projects related to infrastructure, as I said. We have enough talent to do it now.
ER: Is your company ready to take some part in what you suggested to be started?
SH: I would love to do it and we are fully capable of doing it provided we have support and finances as we are competing against massive imports. Our government in Sindh is importing buses from China instead of the local industry and should be given the chance.