A Few Comments on Professor Hilda’s Conference Address: “Planning Experience in Pakistan”

Professor Huda’s conference address on the “Planning Experience in Pakistan” covers, within a space of some twenty pages, a wide range of issues important for the country’s economic planning and policies. Many problems are not, however, considered at length, and some questions are just raised for detailed study by experts. But with its analysis, suggestions and questions, this address is highly stimulating to economists and policy-makers in their endeavour to identify and resolve the problems confronting development planning in Pakistan. He dwells, among other things, on the problems of relationship between the planning technician and the policy-maker, appropriate planning techniques, interregional balance in development, the pace and the pattern of industrialisation, incentives to private enterprise and role of the public sector, income dis¬tribution and saving generation, and costs and benefits of external aid. He finally reflects on the major tasks that should be undertaken in the Fourth-Plan period. The main focus of the following comments will be on the relationship between the technician and the politician in development planning, private incentives and social goals, and income distribution and mobilisation of domes¬tic savings.