Experts highlight need to prioritise health spending
Pandemic resulted in lesser access to healthcare facilities for expecting women
PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD:
The society needs to change its behaviour towards health spending to face the emerging health and nutrition challenges after the novel coronavirus pandemic.
In addition to policy level response by the governments, universal health coverage has become need of hour to respond to needs of the citizens. Noted physicians and experts from the health sector said this while sharing their views with the participants of Universal Health Coverage and Nutrition Integration – Challenges to Health Systems in Pakistan During Covid-19, organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) on Thursday. Prof Shehzad A Khan, from Health Services Academy (HSA) said the health and nutrition indicators are very poor in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s development decade of the 1960s marked by a democratic deficit ended in a deep political crisis. AFP/File
Surging inequality and erosion of democratic values in the corridors of power are proving politically divisive and are impairing social cohesion worldwide. Much of the discontent at the grassroots is spilling on the streets. And populists have been reactivated.
The disproportionate concentration of wealth in few hands tends to create recession or depression, unemployment and poverty. The high economic growth, which is not inclusive, does not create enough needed political capital and ultimately leads to political turmoil.
Pakistan’s development decade of the 1960s marked by a democratic deficit ended in a deep political crisis. Politics moved to the centre stage and economics took a back seat as an unacceptable level of disparity in regional and household incomes created mass dissatisfaction and led to the 1971 tragedy. Economic growth without distributive and
Experts stress need for shift towards green energy
Urge govt to devise policies to facilitate stakeholders in exploring avenues
A REUTERS REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGE
ISLAMABAD:
Experts have agreed that the time is ripe for Pakistan to shift towards green energy and called on the government to devise policies to facilitate stakeholders in exploring additional avenues for sustainable renewable energy.
At a webinar titled “Clean Energy Transition in Pakistan” on Wednesday, Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB) Managing Director Shah Jahan Mirza said power and energy sectors of Pakistan were not in a desirable shape due to various factors.
He covered various aspects of the clean energy landscape in Pakistan. “Our natural resources, especially gas reserves, are depleting rapidly, therefore we need to act now keeping in view the future needs of energy,” he said. “The processes for private sector investment in green energy also need to be streamlined.”