No.

87
July - September 2016

Quarter in Focus
IPS achieved a couple of historic milestones
during the second quarter of 2016. While the
period marked the 37th anniversary of the
Institutes growth journey, it also witnessed the
relocation of its office and facilities including
seminar halls, library and bookshop to an
exciting new location in E-11/3 Sector of
Islamabad.
As for the academic activities, IPS kept up with
its tradition of presenting pre and post-budget
analysis, scrutinizing the economic measures,
plans and decisions made by incumbent
authorities in two separately held seminars.
The other significant sessions held during the
period included two richly debated roundtables
titled Nuclear Suppliers Group, India and
Pakistan and Rapprochement between Iran
and the West: Implications for South Asia', and
a two-day conference: 'Pakistan relations with
China co-organized with Pakistan Study
Center, University of Peshawar.
The Institutes research work yielded five
policy briefs/seminar reports during the quarter
including two concerning the recently
announced federal budget, (other than a
full-page article in The News) one over the
energy component of CPEC, another
discussing the election and political system in
Iran and the last one over the unfulfilled
promises of Nuclear Weapon Free World by
Barrack Obama.
Two delegations - one from CICIR (China
Institute of Contemporary International
Relations), and another from Uzbekistan
visited IPS during the period whereas the
Institute was also represented by Director
General Khalid Rahman in the 4th conference
of 'China-South Asian Countries Think-Tank
Forum (CSATTF) in Kunming, China.
A long-term project at IPS focusing on
madrassah education in Pakistan with all
Islamic schools of thought on board yielded
a publication titled Tadreeb-ul-Muallimeen
providing guidelines to madrassah teachers for
teaching traditional curriculum in the
contemporary scenario.

(L-R) Masud Daher, Khalid Rahman, Fasih Uddin and Dr Ashfaque Hassan Khan in IPS pre-budget seminar

Federal Budget 2016-17

of the country in a realistic and meaningful
way.

Continuing with its yearly practice of presenting pre-budget recommendations and

post-budget analysis, IPS organized pensive
discussions and in-depth reports on the
subject this year as well, suggesting the
efficient use of resources and stressing upon
improvements in policies wherever felt
necessary.

The keynote speaker was Dr Ashfaque

Hassan Khan, dean, School of Social
Sciences & Humanities, National University of
Science & Technology (NUST). The event was
chaired by Fasih Uddin, former chief economist, Planning Commission of Pakistan and
was also addressed by Masud Daher, former
federal secretary. Both are also members of
IPS-National Academic Council.

A pre-budget seminar on May 19, 2016

highlighted the issue of fiscal data fudging
which was hampering the economic planning

Continued on Page 03

NSG, India and Pakistan

Dr Adil Sultan

Pakistans
standpoint on
nuclear non-proliferation regime is
based on principles
and fair play,
however, unfortunately, in the
contemporary

global order what matters most are economic

interests and political considerations. It must
be ensured that NSG membership is either
offered to both India or Pakistan or none of the
two; because if India continues to enjoy the
discrimination against Pakistan and is allowed
the membership then it could have disastrous
consequences as Pakistan may be left with
little or no incentive to remain constructively
Continued on Page 03

Rapprochement between Iran and the West:

Implications for South Asia

A roundtable titled Rapprochement between

Iran and the West: Strategic Implications for
South Asia was held on June 6, 2016 with
Rana Muhammad Athar Javed, a veteran on
Iranian studies and Director General of the
Pakistan House a Denmark based
independent think tank with presence in UK
and Pakistan as the main speaker and

Rana Muhammad Athar Javed, Amb (r) Khalid Mehmood

Continued on Page 02

02

IPS co-organizes conference on 'Pakistans relations with China'

IPS, in collaboration with Pakistan Study
Centre, University of Peshawar, co-organized
a two-day conference titled ''Pakistans
relations with China' on May 11-12, 2016.
The national conference, which was hosted by
University of Peshawar, aimed at exploring
various dimensions of Pak-China relations.
The event's sessions were presided over by
Professor Dr Sayed Minhajul Hassan, Dean,
Faculty of Arts and Humanities, University of
Peshawar, and DG-IPS Khalid Rahman, while
it was addressed by notable academicians
and scholars including Professor Dr

Fakhr-ul-Islam, director, Pakistan Study

Centre, University of Peshawar, Dr Shabir
Ahmad, Area Study Centre (Russia, China and
Central Asia), University of Peshawar,
Professor Dr Husain Shaheed Suharwardi,
Department of International Relations,
University of Peshawar, Hadia Nawaz from
Swabi, Muhammad Ayaz, assistant professor,
Kohat University, Professor Dr Jehanzeb
Khan, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan,
and Air Commodore (r) Khalid Iqbal from
Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI).
DG-IPS Khalid Rahman, who presided the

'Understanding Sharia-compliant Mutual Funds in Pakistan

second working session, spoke on 'Emerging

Trends, CPEC and Pak-China Relations'.
Expressing his apprehensions that some
regional powers as well as some local political
forces were attempting to make CPEC look
controversial, he said that it would be very
unfortunate if Pakistan failed to reap benefits
from CPEC which was backed by
Pakistan-loving leadership in China.
He also advised the government of Pakistan to
make CPEC more transparent so that the
country could benefit from the project's
prospects to the fullest.
An interactive session with renowned
financial analyst Asif Kabati on 'Understanding Sharia-compliant Mutual Funds in
Pakistan' was held on 5 April 2016.
DG-IPS Khalid Rahman and Amanullah
Khan, member, IPS Governing Body and
National Academic Council (who is also the
former president of Islamabad Stock
Exchange and Rawalpindi Chamber of
Commerce & Industry) also spoke on the
occasion.

Continued from Page - 01 Rapprochement between

Iran and the West:
Implications for South Asia
Ambassador (r) Khalid Mehmood, chairman of
the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad
(ISSI) in chair.
The session attended by a select gathering
of regional and security experts and researchers mainly delineated on two issues: one, the
current dtente between Iran and the P5+1
post nuclear deal, also known as Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to
dismantle Irans nuclear program; second, how
an emboldened and more assertive Iran will
reconfigure the political and security dynamics
in South Asia.
For detailed report, visit:
http://www.ips.org.pk/whats-new/128-roundtable/
2021-rapprochement-between-iran-and-the-westimplications-for-south-asia

CPEC: The Energy Component

Energy experts in a roundtable organized by
IPS titled CPEC: The Energy Component on
June 1, 2016 urged the government to
persuade China to include financing of
Diamer-Basha and Pak-Iran gas pipeline
projects under CPEC.
Syed Akhtar Ali, Member Energy, Planning
Commission of Pakistan, the main speaker of
the roundtable, in his presentation apprised
the participants that the 76 per cent share of
coal-fired power projects in the mix of CPECs
energy component comprising 22 projects
worth US$33,793mn was being reduced. He

called for removing misconceptions about coal

fired power plants being deployed under CPEC
and rejected the notion that obsolete technology was being used in them.He also claimed
that all three short-term energy targets of the
present government will be met, which were
adding up of 10,000MW electricity in the
national grid, increasing 1 to 2 BCFD of natural
gas/LNG (25-50 per cent increase) and zero
load-shedding by 2018.
The session chair, Mirza Hamid Hasan, former
secretary, water and power, in his concluding
remarks, said that although coal and LNG
projects were providing a quick
fix solution to the energy crisis,
hydel power should always
remain the top preference for
Pakistan due to the associated
benefits to the national
economy, especially water
storage and agricultural growth.

Syed Akhtar Ali, Khalid Rahman, Mirza Hamid Hasan

02

03

Continued from Page - 01 - NSG, India and Pakistan

engaged with and committed for global
non-proliferation regime in case of a discriminatory decision vis--vis NSG membership.
These thoughts prevailed in a roundtable titled
NSG, India and Pakistan on June 2, 2016. It
was addressed by Dr. Adil Sultan, Director,
Research and Analysis (PDS Branch),
Strategic Plans Division (SPD) as the main
speaker while Ambassador Tariq Osman
Hyder, former member of the Oversight Board
for Strategic Export Control, was in chair.
Dr Sultan, in his presentation, reminded the

audience that since the conclusion of the

India-US nuclear cooperation agreement and
the India-specific NSG exemption of 2008,
Pakistan has been voicing concerns over
discriminatory treatment.Our aspiration to
become NSG member is based on: the desire
to strengthen the global non-proliferation
regime; the need for strategic stability and
level playing field in South Asia; and priority for
socio economic development and technological advancement of the country, he said.
Ambassador Hyder in his concluding remarks

said that for Pakistan the guiding principle is

that the objectives of non-proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction can be effectively promoted through freely negotiated,
non-discriminatory and cooperative multilateral
efforts. Pakistan stands ready to contribute
constructively to all efforts that strengthen
global non-proliferation within the framework of
existing treaty regimes and bodies, and as a
partner in the control regimes which should
also adopt a non-discriminatory approach and
not that of exceptionalism motivated by
strategic and commercial interests.

Developing Objectives-based Shariah Compliance Index of Islamic Banks

IPS associate and assistant professor of

economics at National University of Science &
Technology (NUST), Zahid Siddiqui Mughal
presented his research proposal on June 3,
2016 on the topic of Developing Objectives-based Shariah Compliance Index of
Islamic Banks which has been selected for
IPS fellowship program. The session was
chaired by Professor Dr Muhammad Ayub and
was attended by a number of senior scholars
of Islamic economic and finance and representatives of Islamic financial institutions.

IPS moves to new

premises
Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), Islamabad
office has been shifted to a new location on
Thursday, 17 Ramazan 1437 Hijri | 23 June
2016.
The new address is: Nasr Chambers, Plot No.
1, Commercial Centre, MPCHS, E-11/3,
Islamabad.
The telephone lines +92 51 8438391-3 and
fax +92 51 8438390 will remain the same as
before.

Continued from Page - 01 - Federal Budget 2016-17

A post-budget review session, led by Fasih
Uddin, was later held on June 9, 2016, which
led to the preparation of a detailed review
report: Federal Budget 2016-17: A Review.
The report stated that the budget was
presented in the backdrop of a mixed
economic performance.
Despite missing critical targets though, the
report says, the state of economy continued to
show modest improvement since the present
governments take over in 2013. However, it
has still remained below the potential,
aspirations of the people and promises made
by the leadership.
A glance at the measures however showed
that they were inadequate, ad-hoc and in
many cases inconsistent and unsustainable.
Moreover, some critical areas like augmenting
national savings, investments, production and

03

quality, unemployment, social development

and water resources were also not getting the
due attention.
The report also discussed the budgets
considerations for the agriculture, industry and
export sectors whereas different aspects of
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)
were deliberated at length as well.
In the end, the report concluded that the
budget for year 2016-17 was an exercise as
usual where focus remained on adjusting the
balance sheet and ensuring stabilization,
without any bold and creative measures to
revitalize the economic activity in the country.
For complete report, visit:
http://www.ips.org.pk/economy/2019-federal-budget2016-17-a-review
http://www.ips.org.pk/economy/2010-state-ofeconomy-and-budget-2016-17

04

Sharing Insights
Delegation of China Institute of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR)

A delegation of CICIR China Institute of

Contemporary International Relations
comprising Fu Mengzi, Vice President &
Research Professor, Ni Jianjun, Deputy
Director, Institute of World Economic Studies
and Wung Shida, Chief of Southwest Asia
Unit, Institute of South & Southeast Asian &
Oceanian Studies visited IPS on April 20,
2016.

Pak-China relations and China Pakistan

Economic Corridor (CPEC) by DG-IPS Khalid
Rahman. He highlighted that the CPEC
which brings in its fold countless opportunities
for both the countries is on one hand a
reflection and an outcome of the deep-rooted
trust between them; and on the other
represents the potential of taking this
relationship to newer heights.

The session opened with a presentation on

He further stressed that the ultimate success

Uzbek delegation visits IPS

A three-member delegation comprising H.E.
Furkat Sidik, the ambassador of Uzbekistan;
Mr. Eldor Aripov, the Deputy Director General
of Research and Analysis Coordination Center
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan,
and the Defence Attach Lutfullah visited IPS
on May 31, 2016.
The delegation had a detailed discussion with
DG IPS Khalid Rahman on regional situation,
prospects for peace and stability in

Afghanistan and bilateral relations between

Islamabad and Tashkent.
Irfan Shahzad, Lead Coordinator IPS and
Mairaj ul Hameed Nasiri, another member of
the Institutes research team, were also
present.
The two sides also discussed enhancing
academic cooperation between IPS and
Uzbek research institutions; with some joint
projects and events in the offering.

of the project would depend on sustaining the

spirit of the historical mutual trust, mutual
benefit and mutual respect between the two
countries, for which it was necessary to keep a
constant watch on the geopolitical landscape
in the backdrop of enhanced connectivity and
the war dynamics in the contemporary world.
The presentation was followed by a rich
interactive session between the delegates and
IPS researchers.

IPS at the 4th CSATTF

Kunming conference

DG-IPS Khalid Rahman represented IPS in

the 4th conference of 'China-South Asian
Countries Think-Tank Forum (CSATTF)' held
in Kunming, China from June-12-13, 2016.
The conference, which was a continuation of
last year's proceeding, attempted to
encourage understanding among China,
South Asian and Southeast Asian countries,
exploring the role of think-tanks in improving
bilateral and multilateral relations while
seeking to promote cooperation in the fields
of economic, cultural and social development.
Terming CPEC a framework for holistic
development, DG-IPS, in his presentation
titled 'Perspectives on CPEC: Priority Sectors,
Progress, Challenges and the Way Forward',
stressed all the stakeholders to stay vigilant to
thwart any propaganda theme aimed at
undermining CPEC, while keeping an eye on
the geopolitical landscape to avail any
opportunities of changing and countering
misconceptions relating to the project.

04

05

Leadership and Career Counselling Workshop

IPSLEAD the Learning, Excellence and

Development program of Institute of Policy
Studies (IPS), Islamabad hosted a full-day
leadership and career guidance program for
Law Students Council on Thursday, May 12,
2016.

Session on Research
Communication Skills
An orientation session for IPS research team
and associates on "Research Communication
Skills" was held on May 25, 2016.
Its was conducted by Ms Samina Qureshi,
Assistant Professor, Mass Communication,
University of Karachi & Master Trainer, Johns
Hopkins Center for Communication Programs CCP.

Comprising two exciting sessions on soft skills

and career planning as well as a panel
discussion with leading lawyers the program
was attended by more than 70 male and
female law students of International Islamic
University, Islamabad (IIUI).

The trainers and panelists of the session

included IPS LEAD Associates Ikramul Haq
Syed, Rafia Imtiaz, Sajjad Malik, Asma
Mushtaq and senior lawyers Tanveer Iqbal, Dr
Syed Mohammed Anwer, and Qaiser Imam.

Excelling with Emotional Capital

A one-day training on Excelling with
Emotional Capital was organized in
collaboration with IPS LEADs partner
organization MymaCom on June 3, 2016.
Facilitated by Yasir Masood Afaq, the
workshop aimed at harnessing effective
personal presence, leadership, resilience
under pressure, stress and conflict
management, inter/intra personal
communication and negotiation skills.

Exposure visits of religious scholars

Participants of a three-month course being
conducted by Da'wah Academy, International
Islamic University, Islamabad, for imams and
khateebs from different regions of Pakistan,
visited IPS on April 7, 2016, in an exposure
visit to learn about the role of think tanks in

The training organized by IPS Learning,

Excellence and Development Program (IPS
LEAD) focused on the following
competencies:
i) Academic Reading, ii) Academic Writing,
and iii) Academic Listening

05

policy making of a country.

In another session held on May 5, 2016, IPS
hosted a delegation of madrassah teachers
brought by Markaz-e-Ilm-o-Tehqeeq. The
delegates had an interactive session with
DG-IPS Khalid Rahman.

06

[New Arrival]
Tadreeb-ul-Muallimeen

Teachers training is considered an essential

part of formal educational process. Religious
Education Institutions (REIs) or Madaris, too,
have a long tradition of imparting teaching
skills and knowledge, albeit through personal
interactions, where the senior scholars and
teachers in a madrassah informally enlighten
their juniors with their methods and
experiences.
The need of a comprehensive and
standardized teachers training manual for
madaris however has long been felt, the
exigency of which was also expressed by the
leaders of leading madrassa boards at a
roundtable discussion at IPS some time ago.
IPS, in response, embarked on the task, taking
on board religious scholars, administrators and
educationists to design and develop a course
for madrassa teacherstraining.
The book Tadreeb-ul-Muallimeen edited and
compiled by Syed Nadeem Farhat and Syed
Muttaqin-ur-Rahman is an outcome of
concerted efforts made by IPS and its
associates and is expected to receive a warm
reception in Islamic education circles.
The first edition of the book not only spells
ideas for better management of classes and
the institution, but also guides the madrassa
teachers at length regarding the teaching of
their specific subjects.
Being the first formal publication of its kind, the
book has desisted from indulging into technical
and complex terminologies and theories. It
presents a smooth and simple reading with
teaching techniques adaptable to a general
REI environment.

Policy briefs and reports

The policy discourse at IPS during the last
three months was published in the form of
following reports, the detailed copies of which
are available on IPS websites
(www.ips.org.pk, www.ipsurdu.com):

1. A brief paper State of Economy and

Budget 2016-17 came as a continuation of
Institutes 37 years old practice of
presenting pre- and post-budget analysis
and proposals for the policymakers and all
the stakeholders concerned. Part of the
paper was derived from a pre-budget
seminar with the similar title held at IPS on
May 19, 2016.

2. A post-budget analysis titled Federal

Budget 2016-17: A Review termed the
recent budget short of self-reliance and
inclusive growth objectives, lacking in
meaningful approach to broaden the
domestic resource base and measures to
augment domestic savings and
investments, direct foreign investments,
and productivity.

4. A situational brief, Elections and Political

System in Iran studied whether the Iranian
election results, both from February 26
and the run-off elections held on April 29,
2016 show if the Iranian hardliners and the
conservatives have been outmaneuvered
by its moderates.

5. A situational brief Obamas Unfulfilled

Promise of Nuclear Weapons Free World
maintained that while Obama heads
towards closing his second and last tenure
in the White House, any tangible
movement towards much touted global
zero is nowhere in sight. Little has been
done in terms of the making the world free
of, or even relatively safer from, the
hazards of nuclear weapons.

[Forthcoming]
Policy Perspectives
(Vol. 13, No. 2)

3. A report CPEC: The Energy Component

stressed that with the investment of
$34billion, the energy component of CPEC
offers a big opportunity to resolve the
energy crises which has been lingering in
the country for over a decade owing to the
lack of adequate financing and funding
among other factors.

Institute of Policy Studies: Nasr Chambers, Plot No. 1, Commercial Centre, MPCHS, E-11/3, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Ph: +92 51 843 8391-3, Fax: +92 51 8438390, Email: ipsnews@ips.net.pk, Web: www.ips.org.pk, www.ipsurdu.com
Editor: Naufil Shahrukh, Asst. Editor: Farhan Syed, Layout: M. Asim Shahid
06