The Institute of Strategic Studies, Islamabad (ISSI) organized a roundtable discussion on Poverty Alleviation and National Security on April 22, 2016. Civil society representatives, government officials, academics and students from various universities constituted the diverse discussion panel. Ambassador Masood Khan, Director General, ISSI opened the event with his welcome remarks said that there is a direct correlation between poverty alleviation and national security. He emphasized that reducing the gap between the rich and poor was essential to reduce poverty. He also highlighted the importance of the public and private efforts in collaboration for alleviating poverty in Pakistan.
The keynote speaker Dr. Hafiz A. Pasha, a senior economist, gave a powerful presentation on national status of poverty, supplementing his hard-hitting arguments with empirical data and new research being conducted in this field. He appreciated the government for prioritizing poverty alleviation. Contextualizing the link between poverty alleviation and national security in Pakistan, he said that there is a powerful link between poverty and absence on human security.
