“Institutional fragmentation in urban governance.” Presentation. Blavatnik School of Government and the Said Business School Joint Early Career Research Showcase. 3rdJuly 2019. “Kabul: identity and legitimacy in a fragile context.” Panel chair and organizer. University of Oxford’s Challenges of Government Conference2019. 31st October 2019 (video below).“Financing Punjab’s cities: Land and property taxes workshop.” Speaker and workshop chair. International Growth Center … Continue reading Lectures, Panels and Conferences →

For what it’s worth, Pakistanis have created much noise concerning its education crisis. Enough to get the government’s attention. To some extent, it has paid off. It is the center – or near the center – of our public debate. Despite all this, over 20 million are still out of school. Those in schools aren’t … Continue reading The case for a culture of learning →

The story is now as Pakistani as it gets. We go to the IMF, get a few billion dollars, we use it to finance an import-led growth bubble which increases domestic consumption. It’s all good so far. We say goodbye to the IMF. Consumption allows us to proclaim that we’re growing. The GDP is growing, … Continue reading Pakistan’s Growth Story, Simplified →

As Pakistan fails to collect a decent proportion of own-source revenue, it has little choice than to take on debt or depend on more creative means, such as a recent crowdfunding campaign, to fund public projects. Where does Pakistan stand? Pakistan tax-to-GDP ratio is about 12% . In comparison, OECD countries raise taxes equivalent to … Continue reading Blog: Reforming Pakistan’s Tax System: Evidence-based suggestions →

Originally published in Dawn.com on October 16, 2018 and can be read here. It was subsequently cross-posted at Scroll.in here. Pakistan’s formula for economic growth is as flawed as it gets: borrow foreign currency-denominated loans, build some large-scale infrastructure, get a minor growth spurt in the process, and wait until this growth spurt fades so we … Continue reading Op-Ed: Why Pakistan will go to the IMF again, and again and again →

I just completed Joe Studwell's new book "How Asia Works: Success and Failure in the World's Most Dynamic Region." Here are some thoughts I tweeted about after reading it. 1) Size of farms matters! Studwell argues that having a small (3ish acre) family-owned farms boosts agriculture productivity (read: land reforms!). There are various loopholes countries (like … Continue reading Thoughts on Joe Studwell’s ‘How Asia Works’ →

These are my comments published in Dawn.com on Sep 19, 2018 after the amended finance bill by the 15th National Assembly of Pakistan. "The bill is anything but populist" — Shahrukh Wani, researcher at Blavatnik School of Government, Oxford The announcement contains pretty straightforward short-term stabilising measures. Essentially, this allows the government to 'tighten its belt' a bit and give … Continue reading Commentary for Dawn on 2018 Pakistan Budget Changes →