Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the Senate (100
seats; members indirectly elected by provincial assemblies and the
territories' representatives in the National Assembly to serve
six-year terms; half of the Senate's seats turn over every three
years) and the National Assembly (342 seats; 272 seats filled by
popular vote; 60 seats reserved for women; 10 seats reserved for
non-Muslims; members serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held in March 2006 (next to be held in
March 2009); National Assembly - last held 10 October 2002 (next to
be held in 2007)
election results: Senate results - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - PML 39, MMA 18, PPPP 9, MQM 6, PML/N 4, PkMAP 3,
PPP 3, ANP 2, BNP-Awami 1, BNP/M 1, JWP 1, PML/F 1, independents 12;
National Assembly results - percent of votes by party - NA; seats by
party - PML/Q 126, PPPP 81, MMA 63, PML/N 19, MQM 17, NA 16, PML/F
5, PML/J 3, PPP/S 2, BNP 1, JWP 1, MQM-H 1, PAT 1, PkMAP 1, PML/Z 1,
PTI 1, independents 3
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (justices appointed by the president); Federal
Islamic or Shari'a Court
Political parties and leaders:
Awami National Party or ANP [Asfandyar Wali KHAN]; Balochistan
National Party/Hayee Group or BNP/H [Dr. Hayee BALUCH]; Baluch
National Party/Awami or BNP/Awami [Moheem Khan BALOCH]; Baluch
National Party-Mengal or BNP/M [Sardar Ataullah MENGAL]; Jamhoori
Watan Party or JWP; Jamiat-al-Hadith or JAH [Sajid MIR];
Jamiat-i-Islami or JI [Qazi Hussain AHMED]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam,
Fazlur Rehman faction or JUI/F [Fazlur REHMAN]; Jamiat
Ulema-i-Islam, Sami ul-HAQ faction or JUI/S [Sami ul-HAQ]; Jamiat
Ulema-i-Pakistan or JUP [Shah Faridul HAQ]; Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
or MMA [Qazi Hussain AHMED]; Muttahida Qaumi Movement, or MQM [Altaf
HUSSAIN]; National Alliance or NA [Ghulam Mustapha JATOI] (merged
with PML); Pakhtun Khwa Milli Awami Party or PkMAP [Mahmood Khan
ACHAKZAI]; Pakistan Awami Tehrik or PAT [Tahir ul QADRI]; Pakistan
Muslim League, Functional Group or PML/F [Pir PAGARO]; Pakistan
Muslim League, Nawaz Sharif faction or PML/N [Nawaz SHARIF];
Pakistan Muslim League or PML [Chaudhry Shujaat HUSSAIN]; note - as
of May 2004, the PML/Q changed its name to PML and absorbed the
PML/J, PML/Z, and NA; Pakistan People's Party or PPP [Aftab Ahmed
Khan SHERPAO]; Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians or PPPP
[Benazir BHUTTO]; Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf or PTI [Imran KHAN];
Tehrik-i-Islami [Allama Sajid NAQVI]
note: political alliances in Pakistan can shift frequently
Political pressure groups and leaders:
military remains most important political force; ulema (clergy),
landowners, industrialists, and small merchants also influential
International organization participation:
ARF, AsDB, C (reinstated 2004), CP, ECO, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF,
IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO,
MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC,
SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR,
UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Mahmud Ali DURRANI chancery: 3517 International Court, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 243-6500 FAX: [1] (202) 686-1544 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Sunnyvale (California)
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Ryan CROCKER embassy: Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5, Islamabad mailing address: P. O. Box 1048, Unit 62200, APO AE 09812-2200 telephone: [92] (51) 208-0000 FAX: [92] (51) 2276427 consulate(s) general: Karachi consulate(s): Lahore, Peshawar
Flag description:
green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role of religious
minorities) on the hoist side; a large white crescent and star are
centered in the green field; the crescent, star, and color green are
traditional symbols of Islam
Economy Pakistan
Economy - overview:
Pakistan, an impoverished and underdeveloped country, has suffered
from decades of internal political disputes, low levels of foreign
investment, and a costly, ongoing confrontation with neighboring
India. However, IMF-approved government policies, bolstered by
generous foreign assistance and renewed access to global markets
since 2001, have generated solid macroeconomic recovery the last
five years. The government has made substantial macroeconomic
reforms since 2000, most notably privatizing the banking sector.
Poverty levels have decreased by 10 percent since 2001, and
Islamabad has steadily raised development spending in recent years,
including a 52-percent real increase in the budget allocation for
development in fiscal year 2007, a necessary step toward reversing
the broad underdevelopment of its social sector. The fiscal deficit
- the result of chronically low tax collection and increased
spending, including reconstruction costs from the October 2005
earthquake - appears manageable for now. GDP growth, spurred by
gains in the industrial and service sectors, remained in the 6-8%
range in 2004-06. Inflation remains the biggest threat to the
economy, jumping to more than 9% in 2005 before easing to 7.9% in
2006. The central bank is pursuing tighter monetary policy - raising
interest rates in 2006 - while trying to preserve growth. Foreign
exchange reserves are bolstered by steady worker remittances, but a
growing current account deficit - driven by a widening trade gap as
import growth outstrips export expansion - could draw down reserves
and dampen GDP growth in the medium term.