Inaugural Address (PDR Vol.55 No.4 Part I-II-2016)

President Pakistan Society of Development Economists (PSDE)and Vice Chancellor of Pakistan Institute of Development Economics(PIDE) Dr Asad Zaman, Secretary Planning, Secretary PSDE, distinguishedeconomists, eminent scholars from overseas, and young economists ofPakistan. Ladies and gentlemen, it is indeed a great honour andprivilege for me to be the chief guest at the opening ceremony of the31st Annual General Meeting and Conference of Pakistan Society ofDevelopment Economists. I happen to be a teacher as well as thepolitician, so, I promise you to be succinct while inaugurating theConference. It is a matter of great pride to acknowledge that thetradition initiated by the Society in 1982 continues with greatstrength. All credit goes to Prof. Nawab Haider Naqvi, one of thefounding fathers of this tradition. It is also a tribute to thesincerity of those who are keeping this tradition alive. I hope thistradition of knowledge sharing and intellectual debate will be ofpractical benefit to the development journey of Pakistan. I am sure thatit will go on uninterrupted in future as well, and through suchplatforms we will be getting new ideas and solutions to our problems.Allama Iqbal also penned down such thoughts: