Pakistan & Outdated Technology

Are you aware how distant we are from the World? Imagine you go to buy a new iPhone 12 and the factory owner insists that you stick to iPhone 8 as it’s the best they could offer. How stupid will you feto us in the vehicle segment, civil engineering segment, our laws are outdated, and even the commercial airlines segment is outdated. The only thing that isn’t outdated is the smart phones/computer technology: and this technology has helped Pakistan become better and has certainly made Pakistanis more aware.

Imagine, the best car offered in Pakistan in 2021 to be Suzuki FX. It’s hard to even imagine, right? Well, Honda CD-70 and CG-125 are using the same ol’ technology from the eighties. Even Suzuki and Yamaha motorbikes are entirely based on 2000’s technology and mind you, that is 20 years outdated technology.

If we move to the Civil engineering section, the roads, the bridges, even the methods, everything is so outdated that we must route construction agreements from companies outside Pakistan simply because we are at loss of actual technology here.

Well, our country has witnessed a malfunctioning government since the day it was founded. Since a government is vital to make sure that new contracts are awarded to the best technology holder, this rule was simply ignored because of the insecurity of government officials because once you are not sure about anything, you start thinking about short term gains such as bribery, family influence etc. This resulted in outdated heavy machinery which in result makes everything else outdated.

We were going to stay in the same mess if it weren’t for Technology revolution. Even that particular change happened lately because until the 2000s it was actually hard to get hands on a decent computer/laptop but suddenly, we started getting shipment after shipment of used but relatively new computer parts and big thanks to merchants who quickly started to distribute them and didn’t hold back. So, by the end of 2013, there were so many computers that even the government had to start upgrading their outdated systems. QMobile laid the foundation of the biggest boom, they sold low-cost phones that it seemed unbelievable. We should be thankful to China for the fact that they made bulk manufacturing easier and made technology available in every home for everyone.

Technology enabled everyone in remote areas to realize how outdated we are and in return work towards it. For example, if we would never get MG or KIA or Hyundai back in Pakistan if it wasn’t for the availability of digital statistics that showed them the possible potential of market expansion and weirdly enough, KIA and Hyundai had tried to enter the market but failed because of lack of awareness but this time around, it was different. These new entrants were able to spread their message and features across remotest areas of Pakistan and surprisingly, Pakistanis responded well.

This takes me back to the point where Pakistanis have always been open to technology, let’s take the case of smartphones, everyone in remote areas knows, wants, and has the latest iPhones. Hence, it was never the Pakistani Qoum who were shy of new updates, it was the government or heavy machinery owners, but this is changing, technology has enabled people, and has empowered the people in believing that they can even afford private airports (Sialkot Airport). Technology has enabled people to know certificates and courses that otherwise wouldn’t be possible. Not only that, even traveling and reputation is better for Pakistanis because they simply now know how to go with study visas instead of danki lagana (slang for illegal ways) to make it abroad.

Pakistan has been home to conflicts, confusion, and bad circumstances but we have always managed to get out of situations. My personal mantra is ‘if we can survive 2008-bomb-blasts-infected Pakistan then we can survive everything. Each passing day, the young ones are making everyone product. Today, technology is inevitable and that’s how Pakistan is slowly getting better. We might be some 20 years late to the party, but we are catching up quickly. I am pretty sure in the next twenty years, we will be able to compare all of our sectors with the UAE, why? Because I trust the young ones, I see a flare in them. Fingers crossed for next decade.