The Power Puzzle of Pakistan’s Economic Trajectory: Lessons From the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics

Authors

  • Syeda Muniba Ayaz Student of BSS, Department of H&SS, Bahria University. Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
  • Urooj Aijaz Faculty Department of H&SS, Bahria University, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
  • Kishwer Sultana Lodhi Assistant Professor, GDGC Buffer Zone College Education and Literacy, Department Government of Sindh, Pakistan.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55737/rl.2025.44142

Keywords:

Pakistan, Power Puzzle, Economic Trajectory, Nobel Prize, Economics

Abstract

This paper analyses the exceptional influence of power on political and economic decision making, which emanates public policy necessary for the long-term prosperity of any nation. The inspiration of paper was taken from the comparative work of Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, and James A. Robinson on Intuitions and prosperity (Makortoff, 2024). The analysis carried out in this paper based on wide range of literature on historic structures of power, decision, policy making ad role of institutions to create their connect and role in prosperity. The connection derived through seminal theoretical and empirical work to formulate a conceptual framework that evaluates how power of elites, state and institutional capacities   influence public policies. After taking the extracts from the work of noble prize winners, this paper is the case analysis of Pakistan, identifying the loopholes in policy and institutional dynamics of Pakistan followed by policy recommendations tailoring political economy of Pakistan. This study infers policies leading to wider and inclusive welfare gains via augmenting non- discriminatory political system to elevate competency of state by inhibiting the elite capture.

Author Biography

  • Urooj Aijaz, Faculty Department of H&SS, Bahria University, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.

    Corresponding Author: [email protected]

References

Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2012). Why nations fail: The origins of power, prosperity, and poverty. Crown Business.

Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2019). The narrow corridor: States, societies, and the fate of liberty. Penguin.

Acemoglu, D., Johnson, S., & Robinson, J. A. (2001). The colonial origins of comparative development: An empirical investigation. American Economic Review, 91(5), 1369-1401. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.91.5.1369

Aoki, Y., Röshammar, D., Hamrén, B., & Hooker, A. C. (2017). Model selection and averaging of nonlinear mixed-effect models for robust phase III dose selection. Journal of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics, 44(6), 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10928-017-9550-0

Besley, T., & Persson, T. (2011). Pillars of prosperity: The political economics of development clusters. Princeton University Press.

Evans, P. (1995). Embedded autonomy: States and industrial transformation. Princeton University Press.

Hall, R. E., & Jones, C. I. (1999). Why do some countries produce so much more output per worker than others? The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 114(1), 83-116. https://doi.org/10.1162/003355399555954

Khan, M. (2010). Political settlements and the governance of growth-enhancing institutions. London: SOAS.

Khan, M. H. (2017). Political settlements and the analysis of institutions. African Affairs, 117(469), 636-655. https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/adx044

Kraus, S., Jones, P., Kailer, N., Weinmann, A., Chaparro-Banegas, N., & Roig-Tierno, N. (2021). Digital transformation: An overview of the current state of the art of research. Sage Open, 11(3), 21582440211047576. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211047576

Makortoff, K. (2024, October 14). Trio of professors win Nobel economics prize for work on post-colonial wealth. The Guardian; The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/14/three-us-based-professors-win-nobel-prize-in-economics-daron-acemoglu-simon-johnson-james-robinson-

Mann, V. A., & Liberman, I. Y. (1984). Phonological awareness and verbal short-term memory. Journal of learning disabilities, 17(10), 592-599. https://doi.org/10.1177/002221948401701005

Milanovic, B. (2020). The clash of capitalisms: The real fight for the global economy's future. Foreign Aff., 99, 10.

North, D. C. (1990). Institutions, institutional change, and economic performance. Cambridge University Press.

North, D. C., Wallis, J. J., & Weingast, B. R. (2009). Violence and social orders: A conceptual framework for interpreting recorded human history. Cambridge University Press.

Olson, M. (1982). The rise and decline of nations. Yale University Press.

Pritchett, L., & Woolcock, M. (2004). Solutions when the solution is the problem: Arraying the disarray in development. World Development, 32(2), 191-212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2003.08.009

Rodrik, D. (2008). Second-best institutions. American Economic Review, 98(2), 100-104. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.98.2.100

Rodrik, D. (2021). Why does globalization fuel populism? Economics, culture, and the rise of right-wing populism. Annual review of economics, 13(1), 133-170. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-economics-070220-032416

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences / Nobel Prize Organization. (2024, October 14). The Prize in Economic Sciences 2024: Press release. NobelPrize.org.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. (2024). Advanced information / scientific background to the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences 2024 (PDF). NobelPrize.org.

Downloads

Published

2025-12-28

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Ayaz, S. M., Aijaz, U., & Lodhi, K. S. (2025). The Power Puzzle of Pakistan’s Economic Trajectory: Lessons From the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics. Regional Lens, 4(4), 181-187. https://doi.org/10.55737/rl.2025.44142