March 2026

Principles of Self Care

The State of Finance for Nature 2026

Trump's Expansionist Ambitions

Neocolonialism is back with a vengeance

MCQs/NATIONAL - INTERNATIONAL

In Conversation with Dr. Mishkat Mubashir (PAS) 8th in Pakistan; CSS 2024-25

­­­In Conversation with Muqaddas Fatima 4th in Punjab; PMS 2024-25

JWT magazine was very helpful in providing me the right path and guidance during my preparation for the PMS exam

Science

GK Tidbits

Are Degrees Losing Their Value ?

Data Bank

World in Focus (Jan.'-Feb.26) - International

World in Focus (Jan.'-Feb.26) - National

The Afghan Theater - Regional giants in play

Confabulating with Mukarram Abbas Enforcement Officer Punjab Revenue Authority

“My experience at the WTI was highly practical and results-oriented. The mock interviews enhanced my ability to handle questions with confidence”

Compulsory Subjects

Eminence of Health and Sectors Under 18th Amendment

Appreciating Pakistan Resolution From Different Angles

English Precis and Composition

Digital Invoicing

In 2005, Pakistan adopted digital invoicing initiative to curb sales tax evasion and tax fraud so as to bridge the sales tax gap. In this write-up, the author, therefore, discusses significance of digital invoicing (e-invoicing) and rules for its implementation in Pakistan. Impact of digital invoicing on sales tax revenue on account of detecting and curbing evasion and fraud has also been highlighted.

Rare Earths, Great Power Politics

... and Pakistan's Opening in a Contested Supply Chain

Water Under Siege

In October last year, the Afghan Taliban leadership decided unilaterally to construct dams on the Kunar and Kabul rivers, raising serious concerns in Pakistan.  This announcement came just weeks after India's unilateral and illegal suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, raising alarm bells in Islamabad. These moves signal a deeply troubling phase in Pakistan's water security, as the country's economy depends on the agriculture sector, whose very survival depends on water. Pakistan has long sought a water-sharing framework with Kabul; none has materialized. Kabul's announcement to “begin construction as soon as possible” asserts sovereign right but intensifies Pakistan's water insecurity. To counter this growing challenge, Pakistan should adopt a strategy that emphasises regional hydro cooperation by securing predictable downstream flows, limiting India's geopolitical encroachment, strengthening its international standing as a responsible riparian, and transforming the Kabul River from a security liability into a platform for regional stability and shared prosperity.

High Seas Treaty Enters into Force

The world's first legally binding agreement to protect marine life in international waters has taken effect, meaning it is now binding international law for the countries and parties that have ratified it. The treaty creates the first framework for establishing Marine Protected Areas on the high seas, which make up about two-thirds of the world's ocean. Currently, only around 1% of these international waters are protected. Now, ratifying countries must begin working together on ocean science and technology as well as helping developing nations to build capacity to participate in ocean governance.

Higher Education in the Age of AI We Need to Act Strategically and Decisively

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant concept — it's here, reshaping industries, careers and the way we learn. The disruption has already begun and the pace of change is exponential, not linear. In the coming years, machines will replicate many cognitive tasks, but they may not replicate what makes us uniquely human: imagination, emotional intelligence, compassion and moral reasoning. As such, universities must evolve beyond centres of knowledge transfer into 'labs of humanity', where students explore what it means to be human in an age of machines. This demands a renewed emphasis on creativity, critical thinking, ethical inquiry and emotional resilience. These are skills that machines cannot replicate but are essential for leading and thriving in an AI-driven world.

The Architecture of US Global Dominance

US global supremacy is not a historical accident but the result of a deliberate, decades-long strategy that masterfully interlinks finance, energy, military might and maritime control. At the heart of this architecture is the US dollar, functioning less as a simple currency and more as the indispensable operating system of the international order. Now, under President Trump, an updated version of the Monroe Doctrine, which equated economic power with national security, has come into play. Although the Trump administration's National Security Strategy 2025 describes it as the “Trump corollary”, Trump himself has referred to it as the “Donroe Doctrine”.

The US National Defense Strategy

The US Department of War (DoW) recently published its 2026 National Defence Strategy, which signals arguably the single greatest shift in American defense priorities since the end of World War II. It articulates a significantly smaller role for the United States in global affairs and downplays the threat posed by traditional adversaries such as China and Russia. Calling for a “decent peace” in the Indo-Pacific and “strategic stability” with China, the policy is a departure from Washington's decades-old posture of viewing China as the primary global threat.

End of the New Start

The New START, the last remaining nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, has expired. With the expiry of this treaty, the US and Russia have entered an unfamiliar territory, with no binding caps, no verified limits and rising uncertainty over how the world's two largest nuclear powers will manage their arsenals in the years ahead. The demise of the treaty is likely to bring about a definitive and alarming end to nuclear restraint between the two powers and even accelerate the global nuclear arms race.

Pakistan Explores Tokenization

The Government of Pakistan is planning to tokenize up to $2 billion of domestic government debt in an initial phase, as Islamabad explores digital financial instruments to broaden investor participation and modernize public debt markets. “Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan, has also planned to tokenize some portion of its domestic debt worth $2 billion in the first phase, primarily tapping retail investors,” the finance ministry said in a statement, quoting adviser to the finance minister Khurram Schehzad. In the following write-up, we will know about Tokenization and its impacts.

US - India Trade Deal

Quick on the heels of the conclusion of India's long-drawn-out trade negotiations with the EU, the US and India have announced a trade deal that will open up the latter's market of over 1.4 billion people to American products. The interim trade agreement immediately removes the punitive 25% tariff on Indian goods, envisages reduction of US reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods from 25% to 18% and commits India to tariff cuts on US industrial and agricultural products, alongside a $500 billion purchase commitment from the US over the next five years. The marks a significant shift in the global trade landscape, with implications that extend well beyond the two countries.

Young Women Entrepreneurs

Over the past few years, there has been a lot of talk about the non-feasibility of investing in women entrepreneurs, as it was perceived that entrepreneurship is only a hobby for women; they are not serious about scaling and they don't have the grit or capability to move the needle and make these businesses viable and successful. However, the perception is changing now. Many ambitious women are now becoming entrepreneurs as both a pathway to financial independence and a means to make a difference.

India - EU FTA

On Jan. 27, the European Union and India reached a landmark free trade deal that is expected to double the former's exports to India by 2032 and it will, in return, reduce tariffs on 99.5% of goods imported from India. Concluded after about two decades of negotiations, the deal has been described as the “mother of all deals” by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, as it which aims to remove trade barriers and open up new export opportunities, creates the world's largest free trade zone, encompassing two billion people and nearly 25% of global gross domestic product.

Demise of the Rules-Based Order

The contemporary global order is undergoing a significant rupture, marked by the erosion of rule-based multilateralism, the rise of great power politics and the fragmentation of international norms, posing serious strategic, economic and societal challenges for states across the globe. The so-called 'rules-based order', which often functioned as an instrument of powerful states against weaker ones, is leading the world towards instability, uncertainty and selective adherence to international law, intensifying the great-power rivalry where the post-World War II concepts of sovereignty and the resolution of disputes through negotiations no longer matter.

Comparative Economic Trajectories of India and Pakistan

At a time when headlines are dominated by higher tariffs and economic nationalism, India and the European Union have finalized a long-delayed free trade agreement – dubbed as the “mother of all deals” – that will cut tariffs on most goods and boost trade. This deal is a major win for Brussels and New Delhi as both seek to open up new markets in the face of US tariffs and Chinese export controls. The pact will eventually link the world's most populous country, with roughly 1.5 billion people, to a market of around 500 million consumers. For global trade flows, that scale alone is transformative. For Pakistan, whose export base is narrow and fragile, the implications are immediate and strategic and raise uncomfortable questions that cannot be postponed.

Revisiting Perpetuated Pak-India Animosity

Riot Management Law - The Police Order (Second Amendment) Act, 2025

Human Capital

The missing link in Pakistan Econimic Transformation

US Withdraws From UN Organizations