Twelfth International Conference on Management of the Pakistan Economy Technology, Entrepreneurship and Productivity Growth – Where Pakistan stands and where it must go:Productivity growth-technology-entrepreneurship nexus: Implications for Pakistan

Abstract

Labour productivity growth has receive scant attention in Pakistan even though it provides the foundation for rising living standards and a country’s ability to compete in the world market. Productivity rises when producers invest and introduce new technologies as reflected in more efficient production methods and improved quality and range of products. Competition among producers entails a constant search for areas of improvement, tapping new technologies and finding innovative ways of producing and delivering the output to consumers. This is entrepreneurship. The first part of the paper discusses productivity growth and its drivers. The second part explains the critical importance of technological progress and innovation in economic growth and the catch-up process. Entrepreneurship and how it might be stimulated in Pakistan is next discussed. The paper concludes with a few ideas on how science and technology could be promoted in Pakistan.