Faculty / School

Faculty of Business Administration (FBA)

Department

Department of Economics

Was this content written or created while at IBA?

Yes

Document Type

Conference Paper

Publication Date

12-14-2015

Author Affiliation

Dr Ishrat Husain is a Dean and Director at Institute of Business Administration, Karachi.

Conference Name

International Workshop on Macroeconomic stability, Private sector and Economic Growth

Conference Location

Dhaka

Conference Dates

December 14-15, 2015

First Page

1

Last Page

17

Keywords

South Asia, Economic Development, Macroeconomic Policy, Regional Integration

Abstract / Description

Over the past three decades, South Asian Economies have recorded an average growth rate of 6 percent annually making if one of the fastest growing regions in the world. The rate had accelerated in the early 2000s to 7 percent before coming down in 2008, and 2009. Before the global financial crisis in 2008, India’s growth rate was a staggering 9 percent and Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka around 7 percent. Consequently, the Incidence of poverty declined to 10 percentage points or more in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. . South Asia was able to attain the Millenium Development goal of Poverty reduction several years ahead of the target date. Per capita incomes increased three fold in this period. With rising incomes, household consumption has soared and a new middle class has emerged in all South Asian Countries. This middle class is global in its outlook, highly educated and sophisticated, technologically savvy attuned to modern innovations, and displaying tastes and preferences akin to thin counterparts elsewhere. The exact numbers vary depending on the definition but there is a visible change that can be discerned through the explosion in shopping malls, restaurants and cafés, international travel, entertainment business etc. This expanded market can further grow through economies of scale in production, trade facilitation and communications, ease in movement of people and ideas across the countries in South Asia region.

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