Pakistan Country Brief - April 2008
Political overview
System of government
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is made up of four provinces - Sindh (capital, Karachi), Punjab (Lahore), North-West Frontier (Peshawar) and Baluchistan (Quetta). In addition, the Federal Government administers seven areas (‘agencies’) on the border with Afghanistan. These are known as the federally-administered tribal areas (FATA). Pakistan also administers approximately one-third of the area of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. Islamabad is a special ‘Federal Capital Territory’.
Pakistan has a federal system of government which at the centre has a bicameral legislature. Members of the 342-seat National Assembly, the lower house, are elected from single-member electorates distributed between the provinces on a population basis, with a number of seats reserved for women and religious minorities. Members of the Senate, the upper house, are elected indirectly by an electoral college formed by the members of the National Assembly, the four provincial assemblies, the federally-administered tribal areas and the federal capital.
All four provinces have their own elected provincial assemblies and each provincial government is headed by a chief minister who presides over the provincial cabinet. Provincial governors are appointed by the president. Local or district governments are headed by elected nazims.
Recent political developments
On 12 October 1999, the Government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was removed in a military coup led by General Pervez Musharraf, who subsequently assumed power as Chief Executive. Following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, General Musharraf provided substantial assistance for the international coalition’s military operations in neighbouring Afghanistan. Parliamentary elections were held in Pakistan on 12 October 2002 after a referendum in April 2002 granted General Musharraf a five-year extension as President.
President Musharraf was re-elected as President on 6 October 2007, but declared a state of emergency on 3 November which suspended freedoms of speech, movement, media and association and removed the Supreme Court. A reconstituted Supreme Court subsequently dismissed all challenges against President Musharraf’s re-election. President Musharraf resigned as Chief of Army Staff on 28 November and was sworn in as a civilian president on 29 November.
The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) suspended Pakistan from the Councils of the Commonwealth on 22 November “pending the restoration of democracy and the rule of law in that country”.
Pakistan held National Assembly and provincial parliamentary elections on 18February 2008. The National Assembly elections were won by a coalition of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), with the support of minor parties and independents. Pakistan’s Government is led by Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gillani.
Economic overview
Pakistan's economy has achieved one of the highest annual growth rates in South Asia. Despite this, Pakistan faces significant development challenges. Adult literacy is under 50 per cent and life expectancy is about 64 years.
Although generating only 20 per cent of GDP, agriculture employs about half of Pakistan's labour force. Pakistan is one of the world's largest producers of cotton. Other important crops include grain, sugar cane, pulses, oil seeds, tobacco, fruit and vegetables. Pakistan also has vibrant leather and shellfish export industries.
Industry, which contributes a quarter of Pakistan's GDP, is concentrated around the Karachi-Hyderabad region and Lahore. Pakistan processes much of its own agriculture output and also produces cement, fertiliser, steel and chemicals.
Pakistan produces two-thirds of its own energy needs, principally in the form of gas from the east of the country, hydro-electricity from dams at Tarbela and Mangla, and some low-quality coal. However, energy shortages remain a constraint on expanding manufacturing in the country and Pakistan is reliant on oil imports from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
Pakistan's principal exports include textiles, rice, leather goods, sports goods, chemicals, carpets and rugs. Its main imports are petroleum products, machinery, plastics, transportation equipment, edible oils, paper and paperboard, iron and steel.
Bilateral relationship
Australia established diplomatic relations with Pakistan after partition and has had a resident mission in the country since 1948. In late September 2001, in recognition of Pakistan's key role in the global fight against terrorism, Australia re-established bilateral defence relations suspended following Pakistan's May 1998 nuclear tests.
Australia’s total development assistance program to Pakistan in 2007-08 is expected to be $25 million, supporting basic health care and education. For further information, see AusAID’s website at www.ausaid.gov.au.
People-to-people links between Australia and Pakistan are expanding, with regular sporting fixtures and a growing Pakistani community in Australia which now exceeds 10,000. There are increasing numbers of Pakistani students studying in Australia.
South Asia Earthquake
A major earthquake on 8 October 2005, with an epicentre approximately 100 kilometres north of Pakistan’s capital Islamabad and measuring 7.6 on the Richter Scale, affected Pakistan, Afghanistan and India. In total, more than 73,000 people were killed, more than 69,000 were injured and 3.3 million were left homeless. In response, Australia deployed an ADF medical team as part of the relief operation and contributed more than $74 million in relief and reconstruction assistance.
Bilateral economic and trade relationship
Australian exports, principally coal, vegetables, lead and animal oils and fats were valued at A$320 million in 2006-07. Australia's imports from Pakistan, mainly textiles, clothing and rice were valued at $151 million in the same period.
Commercial links between Australia and Pakistan include BHP Billiton's investment in Pakistan's Zamzama gas field valued at US$100 million. Situated in Sindh Province approximately 300 kilometres north of Karachi, Zamzama is considered Pakistan's fourth-largest gas field.