No.
92
Quarter in Focus
Completing 38 years of its journey on May 19,
2017 was an important milestone for IPS in the
second quarter of this year. The period also
featured the traditional and one of the most
important annual activities of the Institute:
providing analytical inputs and
recommendations regarding economic policies
and budget planning put forth by the federal
government. It was followed by dissemination
of consequent budget review report to the
media as well as the relevant stakeholders.
Another significant activity of the Institute
during the quarter included a deliberation on
Kishanganga and the Ratle project, which
stressed that a clear legal interpretation by the
International Court of Arbitration bars any type
of construction on Indus waters without prior
approval. A session organized in Quetta, in
collaboration with Balochistan Bar Council,
attempted to identify the measures the people
of Balochistan want to be taken by the
federation to address their grievances.
Under IPS China program the most
noteworthy activity was a session on current
investment climate in Pakistan hosting a
delegation of Chinese investors discussing
emerging business opportunities in the
country. EP-IPS also visited China to
participate in Belt and Road Global Think Tank
Forum (BRF) and the Fifth Global Think Tank
Summit, alongside having a meeting with
Chinese scholars discussing important issues
like CPEC and regional security. Two Chinese
delegations also visited IPS during the period.
IPS hosted a visit of an Italian think tank,
Center for International Studies (Ce.I.S. -
Centro Studi Internazionali), too, sharing
insights about Pakistans domestic and
international politics. IPS researchers
presented their work in a conference 'Pakistan
in Regional Context' held at the Sialkot
campus of University of Management and
Technology (UMT).
IPS LEAD the Learning, Excellence and
Development Program of the Institute
organized an insightful session on the
Continued on Page 03
July - September 2017
(L-R): Shamila Mahmood, Ashfaq Mahmood, Mirza Hamid Hasan and Khalid Rahman
Kishanganga & Ratle Projects: Deliberating on IWTs
Dispute Resolution Mechanism & the Way Forward
A clear legal interpretation by International Mahmood, International Law and Development
Court of Arbitration (ICA) bars construction of Expert, who was speaking at the session titled
any Indus Water Treaty (IWT)-pertaining Kishanganga & Ratle Projects: Deliberating
project without its prior dispute resolution, and
on IWTs Dispute Resolution Mechanism & the
this exegesis should stringently be followed as Way Forward, which was held at the Institute
its binding for both the countries.
of Policy Studies (IPS), Islamabad on April 5,
These views were expressed by Shamila 2017. Continued on Page 02
Investment Climate and Opportunities in Pakistan
The roundtable 'Investment delegates from Sichuan
Climate and Opportunities in Chamber of Commerce and
Pakistan', which was Commercial Services
partaken by a delegation of (SCCCS) and Pakistan
Chinese investors visiting Study Centre (PSC),
Pakistan to explore various Sichuan University,
business and investment Chengdu, China, were
opportunities, was organized apprised of the prevailing
by IPS on May 20, 2017. and emerging business
potential in Pakistan. It was
The visitors, comprising Dr Song Zhihui
highlighted that the rate of
Continued on Page 03
Review of Federal Budget (2017-18) at IPS
As part of the a session titled Federal Budget 2017-18: A
traditional Review held on May 31, 2017.
exercise at IPS to
The session was addressed by Masud Daher,
provide
former federal secretary and senior IPS
research-based
associate as a main presenter while the
inputs to the
Institute's lead research coordinator Irfan
federal
Shahzad coordinated it. IPS Executive
government on President Khalid Rahman was also present on
budget-making,
the occasion.
the budget
proposed for the A detailed post- budget review based on the
Masud Daher fiscal year proceeding was published exclusively in The
2017-18 was reviewed by an IPS Task Force News and on IPS website.
comprising senior researchers and policy For detailed report, visit:
practitioners and their views were recorded in http://ips.org.pk/economy/2128-federal-budget-201718-a-review
 02

'Balochistan: Current Situation and the Way Forward'

IPS, in collaboration with Balochistan Bar
Council, organized a roundtable titled
'Balochistan: Current Situation and The Way
Forward', on April 13, 2017 in Quetta.
The session was aimed at identifying what
measures the people of Balochistan feel
should be taken to address their grievances
and set the province on the path of peace and
prosperity.
The roundtable was partaken by various
eminent names alogside EP-IPS Khalid
Rahman, some of which included Abdul Rauf
Mengal, former MNA, Dr Ishaque Baloch,
political leader, Dr Abdul Hakeem Lehri,
political leader, Abdul Hayee Baloch, former
senator, Aslam Bhootani, former speaker,
Balochistan Assembly, Hadayat-ur-Rahman,
secretary, JI Balochistan, Munir Ahmed Badini,
former education secretary, Amanullah Khan
Kanrani, advocate general, Balochistan, Rahib
Khan Buledi, advocate, Ms Sabra Islam,
advocate, Prof Manzoor Baloch, Balochistan
University, Dr Sham Kumar, analyst, and
journalists Aman Shadenzai, Saleem Shahid,
Aminullah Fitrat, and Farooq Sarwar.
For detailed report, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/whats-new/128-roundtable/2113-balochistan-
current-situation-and-the-way-forward

EP-IPS visits official
think tank of CPC
Executive President IPS Khalid Rahman
visited Beijing, China on the invitation of
China Institute of Contemporary International
Relations (CICIR) -- the official think tank of
the Communist Party of China (CPC) -- from
May 3 to 5, 2017 where he held meetings with
the Institutes team of scholars.
The hosting team, which was headed by Hu
Shisheng, director, Institute of South and
Southeast Asian and Oceania Studies, CICIR,
had a discussion with him with special focus
on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
(CPEC), Pak-China relations, and issues
related to the security situation of the region.
Continued from Page - 01 - Kishanganga & Ratle Projects
Alongside Shamila, the session was accordance with the human rights.
addressed by Ashfaq Mahmood, Water and She said that even in case of Ratle project,
Energy Expert & Former Secretary Water &
Power, and Mirza Hamid Hasan, Former
Secretary Water & Power and member,
IPS-National Academic Council.
She said that India has always raised
objections in any project in disputed territory
claiming that it requires NOC, and
unfortunately Indias version has always been
supported by the World Bank, but when
Pakistan raises similar questions over some
Indian project, one of the responses it always
gets is that the project will not affect Pakistan. India was ignoring an international decision,
This however is incorrect because such which was also a domestic mechanism that it
projects do affect Pakistan because it is a had to honor the arbitration determination.
lower riparian. Plus it also need be considered Even its own domestic laws stress on honoring
in such cases that whether the parameters set the arbitration determination, but it was
by the treaty are being met or not. Now when deliberately ignoring this to suit its interest.
the World Bank does not allow Pakistan
funding for any such project over Indias
For detailed report, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/whats-new/92-seeminar/2110-kishanganga-
objections, then the case should be taken up a-ratle-projects-deliberating-on-iwts-dispute-resolution-
against the World Bank because its not in mechanism-a-the-way-forward

02
 03
Continued from Page - 01 - Investment Climate and Opportunities
in Pakistan
investment was on the rise in the country and
the GDP had also been going up for the last
six years. There had been 16 per cent growth
in company registrations in the last year. The
government was already pursuing an agenda
of fiscal reforms, whereas with the recorded
increase of 6.4 per cent in per capita income
during the last year, the consumer base was
growing in Pakistan, more brands were
coming in, foreign remittances were
increasing, trade industry was flourishing, the
population itself was growing and along with it
the size of the middle class in the country was
also growing. Adding to it the incentives
offered for business investment by the
government - such as significant tax
exemptions in areas like Gwadar and other
Session on budget-making in Pakistan
Students of MPhil (Government & Public Policy), NDU at IPS
A session elucidating issues related to
economic policy and budget-making
processes in Pakistan was held on April 6,
2017 as part of IPS' initiative of 'Indigenizing
Policy Research in Pakistan'.
The session which was attended by students
of M Phil (Government & Public Policy),
National Defence University (NDU) was
special economic zones. All of these indicators
were healthy enough from investors point of
view to start investing their capitals in the
country.
It was also mentioned that over 700 Chinese
companies were already working in Pakistan
in various sectors such as manufacturing,
electronics, textile, etc. The scope of
opportunities for Chinese companies working
in Pakistan had grown so much in recent years
that they have even formed their own
Chamber of Commerce in Lahore by the name
of China-Pakistan Chamber of Commerce.
It was viewed that the strategic location of
Pakistan that serves as a gateway connecting
Asia with Central Asia, over 60 per cent of the
addressed by lead coordinator IPS
Irfan Shahzad, who delivered a
presentation on the occasion titled
'Budget-Making and Budgetary
Issues for the Outgoing and
Coming Fiscal Year'. The speaker
briefed the participants at length
about the institutions and
processes involved in budget
planning and approval in Pakistan. He also
shed light on what can be expected in the
budget of 2017-18 alongside sharing his
suggestions on what should be focused while
researching issues related to economic
development of the country.
For detailed report, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/ whats-new/147-special-session/2132-
session-on-economic-policy-and-budget-making-in-pakistan
03
countrys population comprising young
workforce, a large pool of scientists,
engineers, bankers, lawyers, and other
professionals, the improved economic outlook,
a robust stock market, and the establishment
of a number of special economic zones across
the countrys landscape were some of the
reasons attracting foreign investments in
Pakistan. Agriculture, energy, plant manufac-
turing, shipping, transportation, real estate as
well as the establishment of large warehouses
in the country were identified as some of the
potential areas for Chinese investment.
For detailed report, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/whats-new/129-visit/2123-investment-
climate-and-opportunities-in-pakistan
Continued from Page - 01
Quarter in Focus
leadership lessons derived from the life of
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The Program
hosted a number of local delegations
comprising students, emerging religious
scholars, Imams and Khateebs as part of their
exposure trips to learn about the role of think
tanks in policymaking.
The Institute also brought forth a special issue
of its flagship biannual journal Policy
Perspectives - titled Pakistan and Its
Neighbors - which took a holistic view of all of
Pakistans four land neighbors, the lone
maritime neighbor, as well as its association
with regional cooperation organizations. Two
policy briefs were also published which were
then distributed to the media as well as
relevant policy circles.
 04
Sharing Insights
EP-IPS attends Belt and Road Global Think Tank
Forum in China
On the invitation of China
Center for International
Economic Exchanges
(CCIEE), EP-IPS Khalid
Rahman participated in the
Belt and Road Global
Think Tank Forum (BRF)
and the Fifth Global Think
Tank Summit, held
respectively on May 14 and
15, 2017 in Beijing, China
It worths a mention here that BRF was the
highest-level forum under the Belt and Road
Initiative (BRI), which aimed at discussing
ways to boost cooperation, build collaboration
platforms and share outcomes of coaction with
the stakeholders.
The forum was participated by the
representatives of ministerial-level
delegations, heads of international
organizations, former foreign dignitaries,
well-known entrepreneurs, subject experts,
and scholars from various countries.
Alongside EP-IPS Khalid Rahman, the
IPS researchers present papers in UMT conference
IPS was represented by its research team
members Mairaj ul Hamid Nasri and Waqar
un Nisa in a conference titled 'Pakistan in
Regional Context', which was organized by
University of Management and Technology
(UMT), Sialkot campus, on May 24, 2017.
The two researchers presented their research
Delegation from Pakistan Study Center, Chengdu, China
A four-member delegation from Pakistan
Study Center (PSC), Sichuan University,
Chengdu, China, visited IPS on April 5, 2017.
The Chinese delegates, comprising Dr Song
Zhihui, executive director, PSC, Tiansu Li,
chairman, Chengdu Chamber of Commerce,
participants from Pakistani side included
Sartaj Aziz, Pakistans advisor to the PM on
Foreign Affairs, Shaukat Aziz, current director
of Boao Forum for Asia and former Prime
Minister of Pakistan, and Mustafa Said,
executive director, Pak-China Institute.
The BRF forum was followed by Fifth Global
Think Tank Summit having a theme
Gathering Wisdom for Promoting Global
Growth. Rahman delivered a presentation on
the occasion titled Connectivity and BRI: A
Shifting Paradigm.
papers titled 'Pakistan-Afghanistan
Relations: Nature, Issues,
Challenges and Prospects' and
'Pak-India Equation: Determinants,
Dynamics and the Outlook'
respectively.
Nasri, in his study, stressed on
building upon existing historical and
cultural linkages between Pakistan
and Afghanistan to better the
bilateral relations. This, he viewed,
could be done by increasing
people-to-people contact between the two
countries at multiple levels.
Waqar-un-Nisa on the other hand looked at
various determinants, dynamics and the need
of sustainable conflict resolution mechanism
between Pakistan and India to ensure
peaceful future of South Asia.
and two other researchers discussed matters
of shared interests with the Institute's team,
including Executive President IPS Khalid
Rahman, Lead Coordinator Irfan Shahzad,
GM Operations Naufil Shahrukh and
Coordinator China program Fareeha Sarwar.
04
Delegation from CICIR
discusses regional
developments
A 4-member delegation from China Institutes
of Contemporary International Relations
(CICIR) visited IPS on May 16, 2017. It was
led by Fu Xiaoqiang, director, CICIR Institute
of Security and Arms Control Studies.
The delegation discussed various matters of
shared interests with the Institute team
including, but not limited to, the developing
scenario in the region especially vis--vis
Afghanistan, the security situation of the
region and the role that CPEC can play in
uplifting the economic outlook of the South
Asian region as whole.
The team from IPS partaking the session
included Executive President IPS Khalid
Rahman, Institutes Lead Coordinator Irfan
Shahzad, GM Operations Naufil Shahrukh,
Assistant Research Coordinator
Mairaj-ul-Hamid Nasri, and Assistant
Research Coordinator Waqar-un-Nisa.
Delegation from Italian think
tank Centro Studi Internazionali
A delegation from Italian think tank Center for
International Studies (Ce.I.S. - Centro Studi
Internazionali) visited IPS on April 26, 2017.
The delegation comprised the think tank's
President Andrea Margelletti and analysts
Gabreile Iacovino and Francesca Manenti.
IPS was represented by Executive
President Khalid Rahman, along with the
Institute's team members Irfan Shehzad,
Syed Nadeem Farhat, Brig (r) Said Nazir,
Mairaj ul Hamid Nasri and Waqar un Nisa.
 05

Leadership Lessons from the Prophets (PBUH) Seerah Exposure Visits

An insightful session titled 'Leadership
Lessons from the Prophets (PBUH) Seerah'
highlighting the development and role of
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as the most
successful leader of all times, was held at IPS
on June 1, 2017.
The session, which was organized as part of
IPS' team development program, was
addressed by Abdul Samad Khan, CEO,
Youth Impact, with a view to fuel the
Institute's team with A 35-member group of female students
inspiring and motivational from the Islamabad campus of Jamia
leadership lessons from Al-Mustafa, Qom, Iran, visited IPS on April 4,
the Prophet's eventful life. 2017 as part of an exposure trip. The visitors
Dividing his study into had a very informatory interactive session with
four phases of Prophet's EP-IPS Khalid Rahman on the occasion.
life i.e. i) the leader in
making, ii) assuming
leadership role, iii)
developing more leaders,
and iv) the post-Prophet
impact, Samad
maintained that the
Prophet's (PBUH) seerah
was not only exemplary
from the viewpoint of personal development,
but also provides with a host of lessons for
A delegation of Imams and Khateebs
professional development as well as to visited IPS on April 19, 2017. Research
evaluate our positions as a leader both in
Coordinator Syed Nadeem Farhat briefed the
domestic and professional settings.
delegation about IPS vision and its activities.
EP-IPS Khalid Rahman in the end endorsed The visit was facilitated by Da'wah Academy,
the importance of deriving leadership and International Islamic University.
other real-life lessons from the life of the last
Prophet, while sharing that the Institute will
continue to capacitate its team through such
invaluable sessions in the future as well.

EP-IPS lecture on Personal Development

Executive President IPS
Khalid Rahman delivered
a presentation on
'Personal Development'
at Army Medical College
(AMC), Rawalpindi on
May 19, 2017.
The lecture was attended
by the students as well
as the faculty members
of the college.
Students from Jamia Nauman, Karachi
visited IPS on June 14, 2017 as part of their
exposure trip. The visit was facilitated by
Character Education Foundation.
A delegation from Idara-e-Ilm-o-Tehqeeq
visited IPS on May 12, 2017 and had a
discussion on matters of shared interests with
IPS research team.

Interns present work on Legislation on Family and Women in Pakistan

Three interns from the Department of Law,
Bahria University, Islamabad, presented their
work summary at the completion of their
six-week internships at IPS on May 29, 2017.
Their presentations on Legislation on Family
and Women in Pakistan: 2013 onwards
focused on the legislative performance of the
parliament and provincial assemblies post
2013. They were supervised by Syed Nadeem
Farhat, research coordinator at IPS, who has
authored and co-authored a number of studies
on the subject.

05
 06
Pakistan and Its Neighbors - Special issue of Policy Perspectives (Vol. 14, No. 1)
Titled Pakistan
and Its
Neighbors, a
special issue of
Policy
Perspectives
the
peer-reviewed
flagship journal
of Institute of
Policy Studies
(IPS),
Islamabad
has been
published now
and is widely available for the readers.
IPS has been pursuing the theme Pakistan
and Its Neighbors for past several years.
Considering the wide-ranging bilateral, regional
and global significance of the subject and its
emerging dynamics, the Institute has now
published its work on the topic in a single,
comprehensive volume.
This issue takes a holistic view of all of
Pakistans four land neighbors, the lone
maritime neighbor, as well as its association
with regional cooperation organizations.
The first article Pakistan and China:
Partnership, Prospects and the Course Ahead
covers the span of over six decades of
IPS Press to distribute Pluto
Journals in Pakistan
Under an arrangement with Pluto Journals a
UK-based publisher in the field of social
sciences IPS Press will market and
distribute its international research journals in
Pakistan including: World Review of Political
Economy, Arab Studies, ReOrient, State
Crime, International Journal of Cuban Studies
Socialist Lawyer, and Work, Organization,
Labour & Globalization.
It is pertinent to mention here that Policy
Perspectives the flagship biannual journal of
IPS is also published internationally by Pluto
Journals and is distributed online via JSTOR.
Institute of Policy Studies: Nasr Chambers, Plot No. 1, Commercial Centre, MPCHS, E-11/3, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Ph: +92 51 843 8391-3, Fax: +92 51 8438390, Email: ipsnews@ips.net.pk, Web: www.ips.org.pk, www.ipsurdu.com
Editor: Naufil Shahrukh, Asst. Editor: Farhan Syed, Layout: Asif Taimuri
persistent cordiality between Pakistan and
China, and the recently added impetus to this
relationship with the advent of China Pakistan
Economic Corridor (CPEC), and the
extraordinary prospects brought forth with it.
The second article Pakistan-India Equation:
Determinants, Dynamics and the Outlook
reiterates the need of a sustainable conflict
resolution mechanism between Pakistan and
India, assisted by third party mediation, in
order to restraint the region from arm race and
the threat of nuclear war, as well as to ensure a
prosperous and peaceful future for South Asia.
The third piece Pak-Afghan Ties: Evolution,
Challenges and the Way Forward summarizes
the profile of Pakistan-Afghanistan relations,
identifies the challenges, envisages the
prospects and proposes ways for narrowing
the gap between existing and desired format of
relationship.
The piece Pak-Iran Relations: Evolving
Dynamics, Prospects and Approaches
juxtaposes Pakistan-Iran relations in the
changing regional balance of power from two
angles: i) history of the bilateral relations, ii)
present issues and concerns. It also makes
plausible policy recommendations for
strengthening the bilateral ties in the future.
The Maritime Neighbor: Pakistans Relations
IPS Briefs
Kishanganga & Rattle
Projects
The brief maintains that a comprehensive
strategy is needed to overcome the current
and emerging challenges vis--vis Pakistans
water issues with India and the development
of human resource at domestic level is the
prerequisite. The prompt and timely response
is key to counter Indian designs of denying
Pakistan its share of water in Indus Basin.
For complete brief, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/up-doc/Kishanaganga-n-Rattle-Projects.pdf
06
with Oman looks into the relationship of the
neighbors connected through Arabian Sea
rather than the land. The piece suggests that
though Pak-Oman relations have generally
remained cordial, they remain short of being as
robust as the potential suggests, and should be
cemented further by devising joint strategies.
The final piece Pakistan and Regional
Cooperation Organizations: Towards a
Futuristic Approach studies Pakistans
association with Economic Cooperation
Organization (ECO), South Asian Association
for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), and
Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO),
stressing the need that the inter-organization
cooperation and sub-regional initiatives should
be further explored and fostered.
It may be mentioned that Policy Perspectives is
co-published internationally with UK-based
Pluto Journals and is also made available
online via JSTOR, Factiva and allied
databases. It is recognized by Higher
Education Commission of Pakistan in Y
category. It is also abstracted/indexed by
International Political Science Association
(IPSA) in its database published by EBSCO
and OVID websites and in print by Sage.
For further details, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/eventsupdates/whatnew/ newpublication
/2114-pakistan-and-its-neighbors-the-special-issue-of-policy-
perspectives-vol-14-no-1
Federal Budget 2017-18
A Review
The brief 'Federal Budget 2017-18: A Review'
studies the 5th consecutive budget put forth
by the incumbent government, analyzing
various proposals and measures presented in
the budget for the fiscal year 2017-18 in view
of the current state-of-affairs and national
economy. The brief is prepared by IPS Task
Force.
For complete brief, visit:
http://ips.org.pk/economy/2128-federal-budget-201718-a
-review