Pakistan is predominantly a mountainous country where rural development activities are characterised by inconsistency, politically motivated short-term projects without proper feedback. Since the inception of the coun...Pakistan is predominantly a mountainous country where rural development activities are characterised by inconsistency, politically motivated short-term projects without proper feedback. Since the inception of the country, the top-down approach has been followed, and the same development plans that were formulated for the plain areas have been extended to the mountains without any modification. In doing so, neither the participation of the local communities was cared for, nor the mountain specificities were considered in the planning process. Moreover, the representation of the local inhabitants was improper and contradictory to the facts. This biased approach has been one of the main causes for the failure of development projects carried out by different agencies of the Government. Contrary to the perception of the state authorities, the mountain communities proved to be more open to accept new approaches and demonstrated the capacity and capability of being a dependable development partner. In this paper, a detailed account of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme （AKRSP） has been presented to assess and evaluate the approach followed by this non-governmental organisation （NGO）, and the response of the local inhabitants as collaborators in the development process. The achievements of the AKRSP from project planning, implementation and monitoring can be adopted as a model for rural development not only in the plains, but also in the mountainous areas of the developing countries in the world.展开更多
The Wakhan Corridor is surrounded by the Mackinder＇s Heart Land. Located at the cross roads of four countries： Main land Afghanistan, Tajikistan, China, and Pakistan. The Wakhan Corridor has been the most important ...The Wakhan Corridor is surrounded by the Mackinder＇s Heart Land. Located at the cross roads of four countries： Main land Afghanistan, Tajikistan, China, and Pakistan. The Wakhan Corridor has been the most important junction point of the Silk Route since its inception. The corridor has long been used as a trade route by Europeans and Chinese to reach the Indian Plains and the Indian Ocean＇s Sea Lines of Communications through the Arabian Sea Coasts. Extra regional aspects in forms of quest for the Great Game between Russia and Britain since 1838, the Chinese Communist Revolution of 1949, the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan for a decade followed by the NATO invasion of Afghanistan since 2001 has unfortunately kept any kind of infrastructural development in Wakhan as a fallacy. The opening up of Wakhjir Pass by China will surely improve regional trade and relations; however, India feels threatened as it thinks that the opening up of the Wakhan Corridor will be an outflanking maneuvre against its interests in Indianheld Kashmir; however, it cannot remain aloof of other regional and extra regional players and will be forced to share Central Asian energy resources for its economic development along with countries under the U.S. umbrella. The U.S. in combination with China must play its role for enhancing regional stability.展开更多
文摘Pakistan is predominantly a mountainous country where rural development activities are characterised by inconsistency, politically motivated short-term projects without proper feedback. Since the inception of the country, the top-down approach has been followed, and the same development plans that were formulated for the plain areas have been extended to the mountains without any modification. In doing so, neither the participation of the local communities was cared for, nor the mountain specificities were considered in the planning process. Moreover, the representation of the local inhabitants was improper and contradictory to the facts. This biased approach has been one of the main causes for the failure of development projects carried out by different agencies of the Government. Contrary to the perception of the state authorities, the mountain communities proved to be more open to accept new approaches and demonstrated the capacity and capability of being a dependable development partner. In this paper, a detailed account of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme （AKRSP） has been presented to assess and evaluate the approach followed by this non-governmental organisation （NGO）, and the response of the local inhabitants as collaborators in the development process. The achievements of the AKRSP from project planning, implementation and monitoring can be adopted as a model for rural development not only in the plains, but also in the mountainous areas of the developing countries in the world.
文摘The Wakhan Corridor is surrounded by the Mackinder＇s Heart Land. Located at the cross roads of four countries： Main land Afghanistan, Tajikistan, China, and Pakistan. The Wakhan Corridor has been the most important junction point of the Silk Route since its inception. The corridor has long been used as a trade route by Europeans and Chinese to reach the Indian Plains and the Indian Ocean＇s Sea Lines of Communications through the Arabian Sea Coasts. Extra regional aspects in forms of quest for the Great Game between Russia and Britain since 1838, the Chinese Communist Revolution of 1949, the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan for a decade followed by the NATO invasion of Afghanistan since 2001 has unfortunately kept any kind of infrastructural development in Wakhan as a fallacy. The opening up of Wakhjir Pass by China will surely improve regional trade and relations; however, India feels threatened as it thinks that the opening up of the Wakhan Corridor will be an outflanking maneuvre against its interests in Indianheld Kashmir; however, it cannot remain aloof of other regional and extra regional players and will be forced to share Central Asian energy resources for its economic development along with countries under the U.S. umbrella. The U.S. in combination with China must play its role for enhancing regional stability.
