Brand Pakistan REPORT

1 Jaafar Jabbar, Saddam Hussain, Saad Lakhani, Walid Ali Khan (Sec A)
Branding Pakistan
Report by: Jaafar Jabbar Saddam Hussain Saad Lakhani Walid Ali Khan
Section A BS Social Science Report submitted on 17/11/2010
Acknowledgement
We owe a great many thanks to a great many people who helped and supported us during the writing of this project. Our deepest thanks to our families for understanding and letting us work late at night. We will also thank our friends to bear our frustrations Thanks and appreciation to the helpful people at the campus of SZABIST and our teacher Maam Anam Tanveer for providing us with the slides and reports from which we learned so much. We would also thank our Institution and our faculty members without whom this project would have been a distant reality. We also extend our heartfelt thanks to our families and well wishers. Last but not the least the help of the almighty Allah to grant us with the power and vision to be able to easily tackle the concept about branding concept for Pakistan
Abstract:
This report will look at the current socio-political situation in Pakistan with regard to the world prospect, it will focus on the fact that Pakistan, as a country, needs to be marketed as a positive Brand, and not a negative brand which it has been for quite some time, in order for it to be a part of the world society as a whole, and take advantage of it. This report will try to address all the issues that one might face when looking at the said product (Pakistan) and how it can counter the negative image of it that has been portrayed to the outside world, as well as within its own borders, by institutions such as the media and other countries for their own purposes. It will also assert the importance of branding ones own country in such a manner which brings about a positive response from the world and the ways it would improve public perception. We will showcase the true potential the average Pakistani has to contribute to this and how it has worked in the past. To do this, we will look at the history of Pakistan, the Vision from which is was born, the issues it has been dealing with since, its stand in todays world as a sovereign nation, the media war which Pakistan has been losing, the effect this negative branding has had on Pakistan, the troubles it faces in the international community, the root causes for those troubles and how we plan on Branding Pakistan for the better.
Contents
Branding Pakistan........................................................................................................................................2 Acknowledgement.......................................................................................................................................3 Contents.......................................................................................................................................................5 DATA ANALYSIS / RESEARCH METHODOLGY:................................................................................5 Pakistan Today:.........................................................................................................................................10 BRANDING PAKISTAN:........................................................................................................................17 THE VISION FOR BRANDING (OUR SIX PILLAR AGENDA):..........................................................19 Conclusion:................................................................................................................................................24 REFERENCES:.........................................................................................................................................25
DATA ANALYSIS / RESEARCH METHODOLGY:

To compile we looked at the past, the present and the future projections of the country. We went through numerous sources from all over the internet and the content available on the media. We searched data bases of both Local and International agencies. This was able to give us a reliable source of information that was as unbiased as possible. By using graphs we were able to show comparisons between Pakistan and other countries without which this report would have been incomplete. We used stats which showed how the country has been progressing as of late and how changing something or the other has improved other countries perception in the world.
The Lost Vision of Pakistan:
Why did the Islamic Republic of Pakistan come into being? This question itself has been put to dispute, which explains the intensity of divide that persists in our beloved country. However, to understand this awkward condition we must analyze the political dynamics of the situation in which the state came into existence. One should realize that unlike the Congress, the Muslim League was not a proper organized entity. Formality is another thing, but one should realize that in practice the party was centered on feudal lords, who had little to do with the concerns of the masses. As in the congress, there was no such diversity. The Muslim league can more be seen as a social club of Muslim elite. After many splits and factions, it was the leadership of a charismatic Jinnah that pulled all the strings together. It was the realization of a broader common interest that kept these men together. This aspect must be considered if one is to understand the situation at ground. The Quadi-e-Azam realized this condition. It is why he once remarked, every time, I put my hand in the pocket, I find forged coins. (1) In the congress there were significant alternatives. For every Ghandi there was a Nehru, for every Nehru there was a Patel, and for every Patel there was an Azad. This case was not at all the same with us. There was no one second to the Quaid. This does not, however, necessarily mean that Jinnah was not accommodating to competition. One should realize that the position of Muslims was such that no genuine grassroots leadership was easily found. In fact Landlords comprised 163 of the 503 Muslim league parliamentary members in 1942, which shows that Muslims had a presumed leadership. This leadership is voted because it consists of the most influential and powerful people of a society. It is known very well that the masses, still today, will vote for these people even after extreme injustice and mistreatment. The lack of awareness and freedom intensified as far as the Muslim public was concerned. The death of Jinnah on the 11 September 1948, only one year after independence, brought shockwaves throughout the Infant State. As mentioned above the Quaid-e-Azam was only one. There was no substitute for Jinnah, which brought a leadership crisis. The only leader Jinnah could trust as a successor was Liauqat Ali Khan, who was assassinated on 16 October 1951 . The death of Liauqat Ali Khan added to the already panic situation. Among others, even the vision of the Quaid was disputed. As there were few Muslim League leaders not opportunists, there lacked a significant character able to reconstruct the ideology of Pakistan. The role of Iqbal and the Muslim condition must be understood if we are to solve this equation. Muslims throughout the Indian Subcontinent had been facing an identity crises and a sense of humiliation. The abolishment of the Caliphate added to the already decadent psyche. The poetry of Iqbal became center-staged at this very moment. Iqbal used to be a staunch Indian nationalist,
not even near a separatist. Although he always had religious tendencies he never viewed religion as a reason to back away from national patriotism. It should be emphasized that he is the person behind of the informal state anthem; inside which he made remarks such as Even superior than the entire world, is our Hindustan, and Religion doesnt train us to bear ill-will amid ourselves. At this time Muhammad Iqbal was a lecturer at Government College Lahore. He soon left for Europe where he experienced an unexpected transformation. The young idealistic Iqbal soon came to be known as one of the greatest Islamic philosophers in history. Iqbal has expressed this inner transformation in his own poetry by refuting his previous statements. This can be seen in numerous moments throughout his life, including the above mentioned poem. In contrast, Iqbal now says China and Arabia is ours, India is ours. We are Muslims and the whole world is our homeland. Iqbal then, hence, introduced a new form of nationalism on the basis of Islam, which was not limited geographically. Iqbal left for higher studies to Cambridge and later Munich. He obtained masters and PhD degrees in Philosophy. He also qualified as Barrister in Law at the prestigious Lincoln Inn. After returning Iqbal practiced law in colonial India. However he was no longer the same person. In fact he was now a visionary, he used to say that even he (Iqbal-the person) was not fully aware of himself (Iqbal-the poet). For a person well versed in European culture and civilization, it is quite shocking to see the glamour and glory of the west in such a way. The Prophecies Iqbal has stated above were in the form of a ghazal, a distinct poetic expression. Iqbal said in the poem that he was told by Angels (symbolically) that the lion (meaning by-Islam), that emerged from the desert and put an end to the Great Roman Empire, will reawake from its sleep. And in another verse Iqbal address the West by stating that the world of God is not a shop. He apparently meant to condemn the materialistic character of Western civilization. Then Iqbal predicts that the gold will loose its standard value. This predication actually came true when the gold standard was replaced at the dawn of the century. He then warns the West by stating that their civilization will commit suicide, as it is like a nest built on frail bough, meaning that it is established on weak pillars. Iqbal through such amazing words proved to be very far sighted. He was for this reason declared the Hakeem-ul-Ummat (The Sage of the Islamic world). Iqbal was a staunch critic of western values and philosophy from then on. Iqbal now was an advocate for the revival of Islamic Civilization. The contrast Iqbal used , to make between Western and Islamic civilization, influenced many scholars to come. One such scholar was Mariam Jameelah (or Margaret Marcus-former American Jew), who says in her book Islam and Orientalism, Despite all the imperfections which are inevitable in this imperfect world, traditional Muslim society throughout the centuries of its ascendancy, was free from the curses of nationalism, imperialism, class conflicts, racial discrimination, inquisitions heresy hunts, routine torture of war and political prisoners, body sectarian strife, large scale illicit and perverted sex, sex crimes, illegitimate children and alcohol addiction which cast their shadow over Christendom(3).This reflects the aspiration of Iqbal to revive that past Muslim glory. Now Iqbal, knowing of the drawbacks of western civilization, preached Muslims to organize themselves to achieve the place they deserve in the global setup. He addressed this topic in many of his works, such as "Jawab-i Shikwa," "Tuluh-e-Islam" "Abdulqadir Kay Nam," "Khizr-eRah," "Sham-o-Sah'ir," and others. His foremost concern were Indian Muslims, however it is not only where he laid his influence. His large and significant part of his poetry is comprised of
Persian, having an audience in Iran and Afghanistan, as well as other regions of Central Asia and the Middle East. So in short, Iqbal had introduced a new world view to the Islamic world. Observing the dismal position Indian Muslims were likely to be in after the British departure, Iqbal concluded that Muslims should have a separate homeland in the north-western region of the Indian Sub-continent. He was of the view that in a United India in practice Barahman Raj, rule of the dominant and, supposedly, superior Hindu class, will persist. He realized that such a rule would be disastrous to Muslim interests. He did not expect that Nehrus socialist ideas will, in reality, come into play. He had expressed this view on many occasions, which we can also find in a letter he wrote to Jinnah on 28th May, 1937. He gave his concern for the Muslim cause by suggesting, that he feared that in certain areas of the country for example North West India, what happened in Palestine might be repeated. That the issue between the social democracy and Brahmanism is not different to the one between Brahmanism and Buddhism and that if Hinduism accepts communal democracy it must fundamentally cease to be Hinduism. He then suggested that the only feasible solution for Muslims would be a separate federation where the principles of social justice and democracy are laid as prescribed by the principles of Islam. He made his views open, in his presidential address to the All India Muslim League in 1930, at the Allahabad session, by stating that he would prefer to witness the North Western region of the Subcontinent as a single state with Self-Government. Iqbal did not live to see his dream materialize as he passed away in 1939. However he was successful in convincing an energetic Jinnah, a successful lawyer with extra-ordinary leadership skills and determination to abide by ones principles, to unite the community and struggle for its political interests. Jinnah went through many phases in his life. Iqbal learned his lessons from theory, while Jinnah learned the same from practical experience. The vision of the Quaid was not in any sense different from that of Iqbal. It should not, therefore, come to any person as a surprise that Iqbal was later given the title as Muffakir-e-Pakistan ("The Thinker of Pakistan"). Like Iqbal, Jinnah was also trained in western education. He lived his life according to western values and costumes. However, to not acknowledge the fact that Jinnah went through multiple phases in his lifetime, would be too simplistic. It is true that Jinnah once stated that he did not like the way Gandhi mixed religion and politics, but we also have to realize that it was in a totally different period of time. We should understand that Jinnah stood for the Muslims in India, and valued their unique culture and value-system. The only other option some believe is of a theocratic type, but Jinnah did not approve of that either. The State Jinnah had advised was an Islamic welfare state, where the principles of Islamic social justice may be given a chance. A theocracy is governed by a specific religious class, however that is not the way the Islamic State functions. The state as envisioned by Jinnah was essentially a democratic state. On a broadcast to the people of the Australia (7), the Quaid stated that a huge volume of us followed the traditions and teachings of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).That we were the members of the brotherhood of Islam in which all were indistinguishable in right, dignity and self-respect and that no one should make the mistake of calling Pakistan a theocracy or something similar like it. He said that Islam demanded from us one simple thing that was the recognition of other creeds and asked us that we greet it in the closest of relationships with us all those who, be they from whatever creed, who were themselves eager and prepared to participate in their part as proper and devoted and faithful citizens of Pakistan. The Quaid has made a distinction here that the Islamic model is not at all near that of a theocracy. Therefore a fundamentalist interpretation should not be taken. Jinnah had made his desire known that he was actually looking forward to an Islamic Renaissance. In the another broadcast to the people of the United States, (7) the Quaid
stated, The Constitution of Pakistan.. I am certain that it will be of the democratic type, encompassing the essential principles of Islam. Today they are as applicable in real life as they were 1300 years ago. Islam and its idealism have educated us democracy. It has taught equality of man, fairness and fair play to everybody... Jinnah also, like Iqbal, criticized the drawbacks of western civilization. In a speech to the state bank on 1 July 1948 (6), the Quaid mostly blamed the injustice western economic model for the two world wars and stated that despite such advantages as mechanization and industrial efficiency, the West (in the context of the wars) was in a very worrisome condition. The Quaid clearly said that the implementation of western monetary theory and practice will be unable to help us. He emphasized in the speech that we must present to the world a financial system based on the Islamic philosophy and idealogy. He suggested that through such a step we will be showing the right path to all mankind. The Quaid consistently called the Holy Prophet (PBUH) as the greatest lawgiver. Iqbal did the same aswell. However it is to emphasize that a tolerant society, respecting all classes, communities, genders and ages, within the cultural and religious context was part of the agenda. Iqbal was one of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century. Jinnah was one of the best leaders. The vision of these two great leaders must be highlighted if we are to improve the image of our country. Gandhi of India, Atarturk of Turkey, Mandela of South Africa and other great leaders of world, add to the BRAND value of their respective countries. People respect a people on account of a peoples leadership. Today if Pakistan is too BRAND itself as a peaceful country it will have to first understand the essence of the ideology it was given by its founding fathers, and then the message that lies within must be presented to the world. Pakistan should have a name as an Islamic welfare state that respects all its citizens, beyond race, class, religion, ethnicity, gender or the likes, a state where the indigenous culture and value system is respected and preserved, a peaceful nation with a representing a peaceful brand of Islam, and a state with an independent foreign policy.
Pakistan Today:
If one was to pick up the recent international magazine of Newsweeki This is what one would find:
Images like these are filled in the media of the world and years of negative propaganda against Pakistan have led to its image to become HIGHLY negative in the world. So much so that it had drastically affected its people. According to FutureBrand, the authoring company behind the Country Brand Index, initial results from the 2010 publication of the Country Brand Index have been announced, which take into account numerous factors such as Tourism, Economy, the Happiness index, Places to visit, Cultural history, Arts and Crafts, Things to do, Probability of being injured or hurt and other such factors. This year Pakistan was among the THREE lowest countries in the world, the others being Iran and Zimbabwe.ii This trend CLEARLY in not a good one and one can attribute much of the cause to one specific aspect, Terrorism. Pakistan has been engrossed by huge waves of terrorism as of late. This new found hate for Pakistan, amongst its regional enemies, has been credited to the fact of the administration siding itself with America in the matter of the global war on terror. Ever since the events of 9/11
Pakistan has found itself on the hot seat, with the eyes of the world upon her. These events can be traced back to their origins which are in the Islamization policies which Zia Ul Haq had implemented, indoctrinating countless children and men into a stricter version of Islam. Those were the direct results of the Soviet/Afghan War which saw a greater degree of militization take place in our region of the world. After the war was over, numerous mujahideen were left with nothing to do and since all they knew was how to fight, thats what the continued doing. These fighters created groups which are now fighting against the country itself. This war has led to numerous deaths and injuries over the years, with the latest happening not less than a week ago in the economical hub of Pakistan, Karachi. If one was to trace where the issues stem from one must look at the beginning. Pakistan had taken the framework of a federal republic and had been governed by both the military and democratic governments. The first decade saw a lot of political turbulence and some unrest ensuing with the constant disintegration of democratic governments. From the year of independence, 1947, to the year of 1958, approximately 7 prime ministers were removed which then made the way for the first Pakistani military rule. A coalition government of both civilian and military under Iskander Mirza and General Ayub Khan repealed the constitution and had martial law declared. This kind of issue has been going since then in which whenever the civilian government was unable to control the situation in the country, the military has come to take control and implement martial law. When trying to implement any sort of control the government is faced with huge tasks to deal with such as poverty, economic discrepancy, internal disputes and regional conflicts. Pakistan saw both good and bad times but when in 2008, after the death of Benazir Bhutto and resignation of general Musharraf, the PPP took over the government; the political situation in the country has gradually worsened. With country being continuously attacked by Taliban militants and the economic situation going from bad to worse the political situation may result in another military coup. The Social conditions in Pakistan have deteriorated drastically since the start of 2008 when the new PPP government under Asif Ali Zardari took control of the country. Even though Pakistans middle class has gradually increased in these past ten years, we can still see today that there is an enormous disparity among the rich and poor in Pakistani society. In 2009 it was estimated that 43.2% of Pakistans population lives below the poverty line due to pitiable federal policies and uncontrolled corruption, resulting in the government to ask for huge loans from the I.M.F. Pakistani standard of living in the past 2 years has declined as well where the common man is unable to sometimes have even a meal a day due to a huge increase in the prices of basic necessities such as milk, bread, sugar, rice, wheat, water e.t.c. In Pakistani society, the man is regarded with more importance as he is the person who provides for the family, while the woman is regarded as less as her work is only based in the house. Because of this more emphasis is given to the education of boys than girls and only 40% of women are literate in the country compared 70% in men. In lower working class and some middle class households as well there are certain beliefs in which men consider women inferior to them and as a result do not allow them to take in many social activities and keep them house bound.
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Economically, Pakistan is worse off than it was 15-20years ago. The Pakistani rupee is depreciating at an alarming rate due to inflation and the global economic crisis. The I.M.F bailed Pakistan out in November 2008 but Pakistans payback loan increased in July 2010 from $7.6billion to $11.3billion. The graph above shows the increase in foreign aid to Pakistan due to its involvement in the War on Terror; however with that came a false sense of security, which was only for a little while with other issues creeping up. Security concerns such as the war on terror have also caused the instability in the economy. With very little foreign investment the prices of goods especially petrol and electricity have gone up dramatically with constant power shortages. Now even the supply of gas has reduced in country with businesses losing millions every day. Due to these problems most small scale businesses have been forced to shut down leaving thousands of workers unemployed. The exchange rate has also gone up as well the U.S dollar being exchanged for PKR.85 which had been PKR.80 a month ago. Unfortunately with 2010 coming to an end there is still no sign of improvement anywhere in both the political, economic or social conditions of Pakistan which should be seen as a huge warning because if the situation in the country is not improved, we could see a kind of revolution by the poor working class which could or will be extremely violent and result in the deaths of thousands of people. Proper democracy will come to Pakistan if only corruption is removed permanently and the military banned from entering politics which is beneficial for Pakistan as a whole. Meanwhile the average Pakistani citizen finds himself caught between this war and has suffered the most as its result. Not knowing what to do, where to go, the overall morale of the public has been at an all time low, which the enemies of Pakistan take, to the full advantage. The irony of the situation is that Pakistan itself has the HIGHEST number of causalities when talking about the War on Terror and yet it is being looked down up. Countless people have been murdered brutally in the name is the so called Islam, and countless others have been lost from the wars that have ravaged the country. Yet the world turns a blind eye to its suffering masses.
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The above mentioned figures from the SATP Database tell a sad story, the number of terrorists is ever increasing, so are the civilian death tolls. The total loss of life is a STAGGERING 25,070 over a period of 6 years, 7,598 of which are innocent civilians and 2,876 are the security forces. A proud achievement is the death toll of the terrorists which is 14,596 which just goes to show how the countries armed forces are fighting this problem. The international media however portrays the countries armed forces in the negative light. That would be another point we need to tackle while we think of formulating a plan to brand Pakistan. Pakistan possesses the 7th largest standing army in the world, and it has been fighting tooth and nail against insurgents that have crossed from the borders of neighboring Afghanistan. This is made even harder when there are continuous drone attacks which cause further chaos in the region and lead to more bombings and other attacks within the country, causing its image to plummet even further down in the international scene.
The current political scenario of Pakistan is also in shambles, this can be attributed to high levels of corruption in the government, with Pakistan name being among the top most corrupt countries in the world, and its image is that of a government that is highly dependent of foreign aid to function, which makes people reluctant to help. The government has been highly ineffective when it came to portray the correct image of Pakistan abroad, with many being caught in scandals of one sort or the other and numerous instances of mismanagement of funds. This can be seen in the example that when the floods of 2010 hit Pakistan, their devastation was MORE than that of the Haiti and the Indian Tsunami combined, YET the airtime/aid given to Pakistan amounted to NOTHING. This is all due to the negative image of Pakistan which has been
portrayed over the years. Another instance of such a case was when Angelina Jolie came to Pakistan to help those affected by the floods, and when she was greeted in the Presidents house, she gave the suggestion to the UN that had the Pakistani government used the funds it had for her welcome on the flood victims, a lot of lives could have been saved, and she requested that the funds that were given to Pakistan during this time be monitored. A comparison between the aid given to the two countries (Pakistan & Haiti) can be seen below:
This graph clearly shows the preference for Haiti over Pakistan, even though the Pakistani floods were a LOT more severe. Another interesting this to note is that besides the amount pledged by countries, PRIVATE donations to Haiti were MORE than that donated by the world super power USA, whereas private donations were very low to Pakistan when compared to Haiti. This trend shows the negativity the world population feels towards Pakistanis. As if this wasnt enough there were even some reports that the funds for the flood victims were being used for personal gains, and though no evidence was found, the damage had been done. People who werent willing to trust, now had an even bigger reason NOT to donate. The REASON for such a low amount can also be seen in the following graph:
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According to a recent survey BBC survey1 Pakistan came as the second most hated country in the world, even worse than countries like Israel and North Korea. The only country whos below us is Iran and we all know how the extensive media campaign against Iran has been playing over and over in the international media. The media is a very powerful tool when it comes to shaping public perception and countries like USA and ISRAEL both use such things to a certain extent. The issue of negative self perception can also be seen in the reality that a soaring number of the educated younger age group is determined to leave the country as soon as possible, with Pakistan being one of the top countries, whose educated/skilled population is migrating abroad at an frighteningly quick rate. At the time when the country needs to be saved the MOST, the saviors themselves are busy packing their bags and heading for the nearest exit. All those who are left behind are either too ignorant pr too apathetic to do anything for the country that is suffering. One common type of excuse that all of the youngsters who take part in this resettlement have, there is no opportunity in this country they say, we are going out of the country to make our future safe and sound. If one was to look in the State of the World 2006 population report available in the records of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), juvenile people between the ages of 15 and 25 years make up one third of the total worldwide migration flowviii. This is a alarming thing for Pakistan as,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/160410bbcwspoll.pdf
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like any 3rd world country, the youth is its biggest asset. This rate of migration has attained new heights in the middle of the modern socio-political crisis, which doesnt seem to be ending any time soon. The younger generation of Pakistan, through this period, is obviously confused and uncertain about the prospect of this country and a lot of have decided to move out, Australia and Canada seem to be the most popular choices. With the edification sectors of this Pakistan in a steep decline, its impossible now to ignore this silent threat which the country faces. As more and more of the most talented minds of the country are heading out, the future looks dreary. Its not to say that its entirely their fault, after all who wouldnt want a secure future for themselves? The real tough question one must ask themselves is How can we give this country a secure future? for if this inclination were to prolong, a secure future is the last thing we will accomplish. Many have played the *blame game* and have held responsible the Pakistani government, but the blame transparently lies on us, the youth. Even in the face of confusion, we must stand firm to find an answer. Pakistan receives the 6th largest amount of remittances in the world ($6.50 billion during 2007-2008, $8.90 billion in the 2010 fiscal year)ix. This amount is detrimental to the Pakistani economy:
But sending back money is not enough when the skilled workforce that is required to put that money to proper use is nowhere to be seen. Aristotle correctly said Youth is easily deceived, because it is quick to hope. We need more than hope, we need visionaries and we need leaders. That cream of the crop will be from the youth that has almost deserted ship. That time is not far when Pakistan would achieve the dream Quaid-e-Azam had for it, the question is, how will be Brand Pakistan for the better. The answer lies below
BRANDING PAKISTAN:
The term BRAND refers to the identity that is built of a certain service, thing, product or business. Branding is done via numerous forms such as making a sign, name, symbol or any slogan to represent that brand. The aim of a company/product, when it tries to brand itself, is to evoke a positive type of emotional response from the consumer by associating itself to good feelings. It is a personality which helps identify a company, service or product and how that thing relates itself with certain factors such as its Customers, Business Partners, Current Investors and the Staff that it employees. Things like feelings, perceptions, experiences, attitudes, feelings and brand image etc, become linked with that brand and helps create an experience which is related to the brand. This is known as Brand Experience, also at times its referred to as the Brand Image, it is basically a symbolic construction created within the mind of the consumer and has all the expectations and information which would be associated with that service or product. Thus branding looks to provide the service or product with an identity, which the consumer can relate with and turns a generic product into an entity with attributes, which can bring to mind, relations and feeling and develop a sort of personality for the said product. Today, when we compare Pakistan to many developing and developed countries, we dont find the main ingredient which they have employed; hence have in common, to actually show where they are heading with respect to the branding index. The country branding index is the measure provided by an autonomous agency /body about a country's growth (be it an increase or decrease). It measures people, the governance, exports, tourism, culture and heritage and investment and immigration. Countries use these indexes rating for their advantage in order to target the entire global community for their benefits. Famous example include: Malaysia's truly Asia, India's Incredible India, France's ATOUT France (formerly Maison de la France). These countries
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portray the positive sides of their respective countries through different mediums, this may include: print media and electronic media. The main agenda behind establishing such portrayal through such medium is to cater and answer different questions Questions which are causing a trauma, or a reason for a filthy image for a country hence only after answering such question(s) can a country progress further in the relative fields to incline in the C.B.I. and provide the country with the shelter of growth and prosperity, for instance, Incredible India targets all the problems, which the international community finds in the Indian community, even though the problems may exists, the agenda behind Incredible India is to broadcast and cater these problems in such a beautiful and manipulative way that the view falls for their depicted image about India, the viewer actually forgets all what's said about the Indian community and falls for the idea of an incredible India. The program further subsides the negative traditions inside India and portrays the positive sides of the Indian cultures, traditions and festivals. This helps establish a robust image about India in the International community. Incredible India was again successfully used after the Mumbai's serial killings, which took place at the Oberoi's and Taj, the program portrayed a much stabilized India, and they showed this stabilized India by showing the solidarity found among the Indians for such a high profile fiasco. Not only the Indian population but also the high concerned Indian government, and how swift the Indian paramilitary forces were to avoid a catastrophic scenario. This showing as a result developed a very sympathetic wave in international forums for the Indian serial killing in Mumbai, hence provided a cover for Indians image after such a shameful fiasco. Another example is a less renowned, Iranian branding agency, known as Irpedia, the role of the Irepedia is to work as a catalogue, same as the very famous encyclopedia Wikipedia, The medium the Iranian agency has used is an electronic, web based media. It's common today for many states and countries to consider Iran as the next big threat to global security. This as a result has resulted into Iran's debacle to portray its branding as a whole. What really one should appreciate about Iran is the fact that being a communist society, they have actually used the luxury of electronic media to clear many labels that have been stamped upon the Islamic republic of Iran. For example: on www.Irpedia.com, there are blogs which are specifically answered in the forums to address different questions to different problems and issues which Iran and the Iranian government is targeted upon. Not only is it a political medium but it also provides an up to date information about tourism and industry in Iran. Surly it helps Iran in a way or two for its declining position in the world scenario. Unfortunately, Pakistan has failed to develop such a medium to portray a robust image to the international community, with all the years since independence, all Pakistan is now left with is the label of Breeding Ground for Terror. Merely it's due to the lack of efforts by our governments to purify this image of Pakistan. Our neighbors also have the same insurgent movements in their country, example: the rebel league the Naxalites and Maoist, but these insurgent leagues have not really caused an effect to India's image, neither is India a terrorist state, neither is it coined as one. In fact India is booming and booming to an extent that India was its seat in the G8. Many historians believe that the hard work done by the Indian community is the secret to India's growth but what really brought about a change in the Indian community is the timely and precise introduction of the need to brand India. India was heading was heading
nowhere till the late eighties but when India initially started to take over as a nation, finding the uptight branding to show the real spirit of India, India started to grow and prospers as a nation. Pakistan needs to get on track. Surly on the same track on which India took. To brand a positive image of Pakistan nowadays has become extremely difficult due to the current situation in the country and the security issues for everyone. Because of this many people are unable to show a good image for the country, the same image which the founder of Pakistan had once envisioned for Pakistan. There is however still ways in which Pakistan can be positively branded. This positivity can help Pakistan in its entire sector:
THE VISION FOR BRANDING (OUR SIX PILLAR AGENDA):

Six Pillars include: 1) People 2) Governance 3) Exports 4) Tourisms 5) Culture and Heritage 6) Media
http://pakindependence.blogspot.com/2009_08_01_archive.html
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PEOPLE: People play a very vital role to shape any society. The importance of people in a community is so immense that this single element can either ruin the social structure of the community, or set an example for all the communities in the global race. Chinese are a classic example for a community setting example for others. For Pakistan's positive branding, we need to first bring about an education plan which works on the principle of educating the country. Our first agenda will be to grow the literacy rate of Pakistan from its prevailing low percentage. Provide free education till intermediate level and then offer loans on very easy terms for further education from bachelors to PhD levels. Encourage bright students to captivate important jobs in the government. This initiative will encourage the public government interface hence enabling a more dynamic and better functioning of the government departments. Another excellent way to do this would be to make it mandatory on each and every Bachelor student to go and teach in the rural areas of the country for a certain period of time. This would help both the teacher and taught learn from each other. As surely an educated population will undoubtedly uplift Pakistan's image as a whole, as education helps develops the mental perception about life, this initiative will encourage more people to progress in the field of getting educated. This cover will also help with the negative image that Pakistan has now being shadowed by i.e. of being a hostile nation and a nation which does not accommodate people from other set of believers and race. There will be a strict tax charged on people who dont qualify till the intermediate level of education just so that nobody finds a reason to avoid education, this will also help counter the underage slavery problem inside Pakistan. The people of Pakistan must be taught to love their country, to OWN their country. It is by taking responsibility of their own HOME i.e. Pakistan that they can grow to love it. This would cause them to CARE about whats going on and take an active interest in trying to solve its problems. One of the simplest cases is the problems of pollution. From the rich to the poor, all throw their trash out without care. We need to instill in them a sense that this is WRONG and that they should themselves stop and prevent others from doing the same. The recent floods are an excellent example of the country coming together to work for the common good. When the people of Pakistan realized that aid wasnt going to come from abroad, they themselves started numerous donation campaigns across the country, the youth especially came out in hordes and generated millions, if not billions, in the amount of donations and the country itself started healing itself. This just goes to show what a little trust and faith can amount to.
GOVERNANCE: What really is important after People is the control of these people. And this can be done by the special power of governance. Governance is actually the art to bind a nation to the legal constitutions without actually causing hindrance to their life not only binding the nation it also involves the translation of the present for a better future of the nation. Pakistan has seen enough of the military dictation, the military have thrown the nation to this fiasco of shame and agony and if we need a positive branding of Pakistan, we have to set a fixed role for the ARMY of Pakistan. Democracy should be the only role for politics. Any party who enjoins to break the spirit of democracy would be made void and the leadership would be jailed for life to leave an example. To a government to be successful, it should have transparency in all of its actions. By being open about how it operates, it gains the trust of its people. And with the power of the people behind it, no government has ever fallen. It is when these agencies lost sight of the real goal, A better Pakistan, and focus on themselves that they lose support and in turn lose power. So being an honest government would be a win-win situation for both parties. The government also needs to win support from other countries, so that they would be willing to cooperate in matters of trade, which would be HIGLY beneficial to the country.
EXPORTS: Exports cater the foreign reserves for the countries reserves. Export is an asset if achieved with great efficiency and utility. Exports bring a lot of growth for the country's image socioeconomically status. Hence it helps with the balance of payment. Our agenda will be to lift the image of the cotton industry which is losing its need in the international market, we will encourage private public partnership to bring about the technology required to fulfill this gap opening in this sector. The perfect example could be the Milk Production in the country which has the potential to quadruple its production if invested in the right manner. The quality of Pakistan goods is known worldwide, is about time we start cashing in to that by improving our world image. Bangladesh has done exactly that and it has caused its Balance of Payments to increase tremendously. Pakistan needs to focus on its strength and let the rest happen.
TOURISM: All countries have certain attractions for which tourists like to visit, and like other countries Pakistan also has its famous tourists attractions which keep foreigners coming back for more. Tourism nowadays in Pakistan is unfortunately at an all time low due to political and civil unrest,
terrorism, corruption and lack of tourist resorts. However Pakistan with its diverse culture and heritage has still been able to attract 0.7million tourists. Pakistans attractions range from the old Indus valley civilization cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, the gandhara Buddhist stupas in taxila, the ancient Hindu temples in Sindh and southern Punjab and most famous mughal buildings. Even some mountain ranges such as K2, the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush attract mountaineers yearly. The city of Lahore and Multan have numerous old buildings of mughals and Sufi saints which tourists love to visit. Karachi and the Baluchistan port city of Gawadar are known for their famous beaches. All these famous sites remain to very few people as the crisis in the country is portrayed on the international media which over shadows the beauty the country has to offer. A way in which the countries tourism industry can improve is with them of the national and international media by portraying the true positive image of Pakistan which will attract foreigners to visit. Advertising in magazines such TIME, NEWSWEEK, DAILY e.t.c will boost up the attraction rate. Hotels should also offer holiday packages at reasonable rates for everyone. The Pakistan airline P.I. A should provide cheap fares for travelers visiting the country. The hotel industry should come up to the mark to international standards and improve the quality of service in the hotels which is very slow. If steps likes these are made the tourism industry will most definitely improve and earn both revenue as well as profits which are non-existent at this time. It will also put Pakistan on the map of one the major and most popular tourist destinations of the world.
CULTURE AND HERITAGE: The most important is FOOD! Food is the all-time favorite thing to do in Pakistan. Almost 90% of the average Pakistanis expenses go on food for both requirements well as entertainment. Because Pakistan has very limited kinds of entertainment for people of all ages, food has become the primary source for everyone. Lahore and Karachi have become the two major attractions for the food lovers who wish to have true experience of authentic Pakistani cuisine. Lahore is the visited place in Pakistan for its type of food available there. The restaurants there offer authentic mughal cuisine with delicious rich flavors and aromas. Also there are restaurants which offer barbeque foods such as tikkas and kebabs which a distinct spicy flavor. Drinks such as lassi are loved by foreigners who visit Lahore as well as the paan. In Karachi the popular foods included nihari, haleem, paaya n especially the sea food. The interior of Karachi offers the best kind of nihari which is extremely spicy and rear. To have the best sea food in town one must go to the ports where there are boats that take people into the deep sea and catch and cook the fish in front of them. In this way the variety of food in this country can be used as an excellent source of a branding image which can be used to change already tarnished image of Pakistan
MEDIA: One of the most powerful branding tools and clearly one of the most neglected is the power of Media. For the last decade the media portrayal of Pakistan has been very negative. We need to counter this by setting up a committee which works with the talented minds within and across the globe to showcase the uniqueness which Pakistan has to offer. For e.g. the government can sponsor initiatives like Brand Your Self, Brand Your Country which would give the average Pakistani to showcase his country as he would like to. By using media tools such as Face book, YouTube, Twitter and MySpace etc, the average Pakistani can penetrate and portray the positive image of Pakistan. We can also set up discussion groups that focus on addressing key issues that any foreigner might have about the country. If one was to talk to someone from the West about Pakistan, all they could usually say is that Pakistan is a country where the women are oppressed, terrorists are trained, Islam has taken over in the form of extremists and no idea of a modern secular Pakistan exists. While it is true that Pakistan does face a lot of these issues, ranging from health and poverty to terrorism and education, but for the largest part part, the country has been heading towards Enlightened Moderation and has tons of venture opportunities that the West and the rest of the world can use. The media needs to bring Pakistans strengths to the forefront, these can include:
1.
Its Cultural diversity. Rich Heritage and History. A huge number of young populations. Entrepreneurial capability. Beautiful geographical landscape. Strong Moral system. Strategically a prime geo-political position.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
8. Gradual empowerments of women in some areas, with the market open for improvement. 9. Large number of technically adequate workforce, which can be used for numerous purposes. 10. 11. 12. Strong potential for creating leaders, in all aspects. A huge textile, IT, Tourism and Sporting Goods industry. Increased participation in the field of Fashion, Music, Creative and Visual Arts.
It can also stress upon opportunities the west and the world can avail by investing in Pakistan, these can range from its vast Technology and IT potential, the vast volume for Outsourcing, its widely accessible Telecom industry, Tourism, its huge number of Professionals who are able to converse in English. The famous port of Gwadar which has been recently been upgraded, which can be used to transport goods into and out of the Middle East. Recently positive steps have been taken to rectify the mistakes of the past with this eye opening account in the same global magazinex that just a few years ago had declared it the MOST DANGEROUS NATION on the planet:
This caused the world to look at Pakistan in a completely different manner and causes relations to ease, and actually increased the aid coming Pakistans way. This shows the power public perception has over the masses and how Pakistan can use it for the better.
Conclusion:
When one looks at it, Pakistan has ENOURMOUS potential to be one of the leading countries in the world, but as we just saw, its been tarnished with numerous amounts of obstacles which
have caused hindrances in its path to glory. As discussed there is a huge need to improve the countrys current image in the world and its old outdated infrastructure. There is an important need for Pakistan to be able to fight the negative propaganda that is generated against it. This can be done by branding Pakistan in the right manner. Finally to Brand Pakistan for the better one needs to INVEST in one owns country. By utilizing its current Physical, Natural and Intellectual assets one can instill pride in a country which has lost its IDENTITY ever since its inception.
Pakistan now has to uplift its image. Pakistani's have to step up Pakistan has to be branded THE EARLIER THE BETTER.
REFERENCES:
http://www.sajaforum.org/2007/10/pakistan-newswe.html i /http://nation-branding.info/2010/11/06/2010-country-brand-index ii http://pak-economy.blogspot.com/2010/04/pakistan-key-facts.html iii /http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan iv http://hotterthanapileofcurry.wordpress.com/2010/10/04/cia-esclates-ops-in-pakistan-whats- v /more-important-than-national-borders http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2010/nov/12/pakistan-haiti-aid-good#zoomed-picture vi /http://pkpolitics.com/2010/04/20/pakistan-2nd-most-hated-country vii http://www.unfpa.org/webdav/site/global/shared/documents/publications/2006/sowp06-en.pdf viii http://criticalppp.com/archives/27782 ix http://www.pakreviews.com/books-libraries/update/newsweek x

Brand Pakistan REPORT

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1 Jaafar Jabbar, Saddam Hussain, Saad Lakhani, Walid Ali Khan (Sec A)

Section A BS Social Science Report submitted on 17/11/2010

DATA ANALYSIS / RESEARCH METHODOLGY:

The Lost Vision of Pakistan:

THE VISION FOR BRANDING (OUR SIX PILLAR AGENDA):

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