Pakistan's military, which has directly controlled the country's affairs for more than half of its post-independence history and which often retained real political power even during periods of democratic rule, has played a significant role in trade liberalisation. Regional disparities have increased since the beginning of major trade liberalisation attempts in the 1980s and at present, regional conflicts and the associated regional disparities are extremely high. The authors critically review the country's post-independence political economy of trade liberalisation, the resulting structural change and the story of regional disparities, identifying possible relations with political regimes. Using a regional computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, the effects of trade liberalisation on regional disparities are quantitatively examined, with an emphasis on the key export industries at a national level and on the relative output and employment growth at a regional level. In the first study to distinguish a possible link between trade liberalisation and regional disparities under dissimilar political regimes, such as autocracy and democracy, Butt and Bandara use Pakistan as a case study to draw broader lessons for other developing countries. This book will be of interest to academics, economists, political analysts and policymakers interested in development economics in general and South Asia in particular.

The link between trade liberalisation and poverty has arguably been one of the most debated topics in development policy debate. Existing studies on the subject have primarily used multi-country cross-sectional data, and there is a growing concern about the limitations of this approach in providing a sound empirical basis for informing the policy debate. These limitations point to the need for undertaking in-depth analyses within individual countries over time. In order to examine the connection between trade liberalisation and poverty, this book provides case studies of trade policy reforms and poverty reduction outcomes of seven countries in South Asia - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The South Asia region allows for an excellent comparative study given the widespread emphasis on liberalisation reforms in the region over the past two decades, as well as highlighting significant inter-country differences in terms of the timing and comprehensiveness of reforms, and the heavy concentration of world poverty in the region. This book is a useful contribution to studies on South Asia, as well as International Trade and Development Economics.

The link between trade liberalisation and poverty has arguably been one of the most debated topics in development policy debate. Existing studies on the subject have primarily used multi-country cross-sectional data, and there is a growing concern about the limitations of this approach in providing a sound empirical basis for informing the policy debate. These limitations point to the need for undertaking in-depth analyses within individual countries over time.

In order to examine the connection between trade liberalisation and poverty, this book provides case studies of trade policy reforms and poverty reduction outcomes of seven countries in South Asia - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The South Asia region allows for an excellent comparative study given the widespread emphasis on liberalisation reforms in the region over the past two decades, as well as highlighting significant inter-country differences in terms of the timing and comprehensiveness of reforms, and the heavy concentration of world poverty in the region. This book is a useful contribution to studies on South Asia, as well as International Trade and Development Economics.

Pakistan's military, which has directly controlled the country's affairs for more than half of its post-independence history and which often retained real political power even during periods of democratic rule, has played a significant role in trade liberalisation. Regional disparities have increased since the beginning of major trade liberalisation attempts in the 1980s and at present, regional conflicts and the associated regional disparities are extremely high. The authors critically review the country's post-independence political economy of trade liberalisation, the resulting structural change and the story of regional disparities, identifying possible relations with political regimes. Using a regional computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, the effects of trade liberalisation on regional disparities are quantitatively examined, with an emphasis on the key export industries at a national level and on the relative output and employment growth at a regional level. In the first study to distinguish a possible link between trade liberalisation and regional disparities under dissimilar political regimes, such as autocracy and democracy, Butt and Bandara use Pakistan as a case study to draw broader lessons for other developing countries. This book will be of interest to academics, economists, political analysts and policymakers interested in development economics in general and South Asia in particular.