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All intelligent thoughts have already been thought; what is necessary is only to try to think them again. –Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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NEWS Friday, 1 November, 2013
gloBal ProsPErity indEx: Pakistan rankEd 132 of 142 CountriEs T NEWS DESK
HE annual Legatum Prosperity Index has released its rankings for 2013, declaring Norway to be the most prosperous country, while putting Pakistan near the bottom with a rank of 132 in a total of 142 countries listed. The London-based Legatum Institute is an independent non-partisan public policy organistation that promotes research and programmes to help countries make their societies free and prosperous. About the annual signature publication in 2008, LI’s press release states: “The Legatum Prosperity Index™ is a unique and robust assessment of global wealth and wellbeing, which benchmarks 142 countries around the world in eight distinct sub-indices: 1. Economy 2. Education 3. Entrepreneurship & Opportunity 4. Governance 5. Health 6. Personal Freedom 7. Safety & Security 8. Social Capital.”
The index now covers more than 96% of the world’s population and 99% of the world’s GDP. The 2013 report indicates that though global prosperity has risen over the past five years, many countries including Pakistan, are facing stagnation. While the US and UK have slipped in their rankings, Bangladesh (103) has overtaken India (106) in overall prosperity. Pakistan – 132 LPI’s Pakistan profile suggests that Pakistan slipped from 107 in 2009 to 132 in 2013, but this is partly due to the addition of 32 new countries in the 2012 Prosperity Index. Most of the data used is from 2012 while some is older. Breaking down its overall rank, Pakistan’s faring in each sub-index is as follows: Economy – 107 The report uses data from 2005-2009 and shows the five-year term’s GDP percapita growth rate (1.6%) to be lower than in the rest of the world (2.2%). Compared to the global average, the
number of people employed (50.7%), expectations from the economy and job prospects also showed a negative trend. The percentage of exports that make up high-tech goods (1.8%) were much lower than in other countries (9.2% average), as was the size of foreign direct investment. The inflation rate for 2012 was listed as 9.7%, against the world average 6.2% Curiously enough, the percentages of Pakistanis saying they had basic access to food and shelter, confidence in financial institutions and satisfaction in their living standards were always close to the global average. Entrepreneurship and Opportunity – 100 Pakistan claimed its best position in this particular sub-index. This was despite the fact that only 49% of people considered the country to be a ‘good place’ to start up a business when the number was 70% in the rest of the world. The number of secure internet servers
forCEd marriagE CasEs rEgistEr inCrEasE
per one million people was also staggeringly low, as was the country’s internet bandwidth. Governance – 123 Predictably, most people (84%) were dissatisfied with the government’s efforts in addressing poverty, while a similar number (79%) believed elections in the country to have been dishonest. Confidence in the military and judiciary was high though and low in the government. More than 77% people believed the businesses and government to be corrupt. Education – 124 Around 60% of the survey respondents children have an opportunity to learn and the quality of education is satisfactory. The country ranked very poorly in terms of gross secondary and tertiary enrollment rates, though. Health – 110 The most stark difference was health expenditure per person in dollars, which was close to 69 in Pakistan but 1226 on average in the rest of the world.
Life expectancy was 55 against the global 60, but sanitation and satisfaction with environmental beauty were much lower. Safety and Security – 140 Only Chad and Congo could beat Pakistan in being the least secure places to live and work. Saudi Arabia was ranked 131. As expected, civil war casualties were high in Pakistan. Sixty percent of people said they did not feel safe walking alone at night, whereas around 10% said they had been assaulted or had their property stolen within the past 12 months. Personal Freedom – 135 Barring a handful of countries (such as Yemen, Sudan, Iraq and Egypt), the Index declared Pakistan to be among the worst countries in terms of personal freedom. Compared to over 70% in the world, only 36% people in Pakistan said they were satisfied with the freedom of choice available here. But compared to the world average (68%), a slightly higher number of people (70%) said the country was a good place for ethnic minorities to live in. Social Charity – 130 People in Pakistan turned out to be more charitable and helpful to strangers than in the rest of the world. A higher percentage of them happened to be married and religious too. But compared to other countries, Pakistanis did not think their friends and families were reliable or that people could be trusted in general.
PESHAWAR: Firefighters douse a blaze in the Benevolent Fund building on Thursday. INP
ISLAMABAD INP The Free and Fair Election (FAFEN) on Thursday released a report on the increase of registered crime cases in 88 district police stations from February to May 2013. The report stated that the time period saw a total 24 percent rise in forced marriages registered cases, in February registered cases were 324 but in May the number mounted to 403. In this regard, Faisalabad had the maximum 43 forced marriage cases recorded, Rahimyar Khan followed by 39 cases and Vehari with 31 cases. FAFEN governance monitors reported that a total of 985 FIRs of women related crimes were filed. Of these, around one-fifth (219) were cases of rape which went up to 46 percent as compared to February when 150 such cases were recorded. The period also saw an increase of three percent rise in honour killing cases. According to the FAFEN report, a total of 33,705 cases were recorded about various other crimes. Two fifths of these cases were of crimes pertaining to property and one-fifth of crimes involved physical harm. Six percent were of threat and fraud crimes and two percent of the crimes were committed against women.
senator waqar’s London mansIon becomes taLK of town SENATOR BOUGHT PROPERTY FOR AROUND £12M IN 2005 MONITORING DESK
A
mansion on a super-expensive street nicknamed ‘billionaire’s row’ has become the UK’s most valuable repossession after going on the market for £30 million. The house, named Dryades, is located in the centre of The Bishops Avenue, a leafy street in northern London. But the property, owned by a Senator Waqar Ahmed Khan, has been seized by Deutsche Bank after a lengthy high court battle, a report in Daily Mail’s online edition said. The 8,000 square-foot home has now been put on the market by the bank for a staggering £30m, but plans are already in motion to knock the existing house down and replace it with a
ITS VALUE CAN APPROACH £100M MARK WHEN COMPLETED
giant new home. Planning permission has been granted by Barnet Council for a 46,000square-foot replacement, which could more than triple the present value of the property. The proposed home would boast 21 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms and 12 reception rooms when completed. It will also have an acre and a half of gardens, despite being minutes from the busiest parts of London. The replacement for Dryades will have a staggering 63-metre frontage, and plans are in place for staff quarters, an orangery and a huge centrally-positioned staircase which is reached by walking through a grand vestibule. Other facilities will include an
underground level containing a car park, swimming pool, sauna, gym, steam room, billiards room, cinema, bar and bowling alley. Its value could approach £100m mark when completed - making it one of Britain’s most valuable new residences. The property was bought for around £12m in 2005 by the family of Pakistan’s former privatisation minister Senator Waqar Ahmed Khan as they looked to invest in the London property market. In 2007, it was used to secure a £50m loan with Deutsche Bank, but a lengthy ‘debt and possession’ dispute between both parties resulted in the family losing the home earlier this year. The receivers, Eddisons, have appointed the Knight Frank estate agency to sell
Dryades, with the property advertised for £29.5m. It is currently boarded up and its gardens are unkempt. Grant Alexson, head of Knight Frank’s Hampstead office, called Dryades ‘an exceptional opportunity’. He said, “The house, which is currently quite modest, is set in 1.5acres of prime land on The Bishops Avenue.” “The value is in the planning permission. A piece of
land like this is worth a lot more if you can build on it.” “It would be the largest home on The Bishops Avenue and one of the largest new homes in the UK. It is an exceptional opportunity to buy one of the finest pieces of land on The Bishops Avenue and it is likely to appeal to an international client.” “It has just come onto the market and there is already a lot of interest.”