South Asia

South Asia is home to over 1.8 billion people and the largest youth population in the world. It includes India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives. As one of the fastest-growing regions in the world, it serves as a strong economic link between the East and the West. South Asia’s strong global connections make it a zone of opportunity for businesses and governments engaging in infrastructure development, trade, and economic development.

Content

Event Recap

May 14, 2015

iFarm Pakistan: Food security, innovation, and commercialization

By Nazia Khan

Pakistan’s agriculture sector has underachieved for the last few decades, and along with structural issues, has led to a growing food security crisis in the country. Gregory Gottlieb, USAID Mission Director for Pakistan, spoke to the Atlantic Council about the growing crisis that stems from not just “how much Pakistan grows,” but from “what it […]

Pakistan

In the News

May 14, 2015

Rakisits on the on the Afghanistan-Pakistan Security Pledge

By Claude Rakisits

Defense News quotes South Asia Center Nonresident Senior Fellow Claude Rakisits on the Afghanistan-Pakistan security pledge:

Afghanistan Pakistan

In the News

May 12, 2015

Rehman on India’s Efforts to Modernize Its Air Force

By Iskander Rehman

World Politics Review interviews South Asia Center Nonresident Fellow Iskander Rehman on India’s efforts to modernize its air force through the acquisition of thirty-six Rafael fighter jets from France:

India

EconoGraphics

May 12, 2015

Two Decades of Sovereign Debt

By Global Business & Economics

Sovereign default is considered to be a rare event. But as the lessons of the past two decades show, they are far from extraordinary. According to the IMF, the main sovereign debt restructurings from the period spanning 1998 – 2010 totaled $117.6 billion. When Greece’s 2012 default is added to that sum, it means that […]

Economy & Business Fiscal and Structural Reform

New Atlanticist

May 7, 2015

Wanted: A Real Peace in Pakistan’s Northwest

By Nazia Khan

“Peace has been restored,” Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, declared on a visit to North Waziristan earlier in May. He commended the Pakistani army for reestablishing order in the tribal agency that abuts Afghanistan and has been used as a safe haven by a variety militant groups. He also called on those displaced by the […]

Pakistan

In the News

May 4, 2015

Gopalaswamy on India’s BMD System

By Bharath Gopolaswamy

The Indian Express quotes South Asia Center Acting Director Bharath Gopalaswamy on India’s Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) system:

India

In the News

May 4, 2015

Rehman: Recasting India’s Special Forces

By Iskander Rehman

South Asia Center Nonresident Fellow Iskander Rehman writes for the Center for the Advanced Study of India on the need for India to increase and further develop its Special Operations Forces:

India

Distinguished Leadership Awards

May 1, 2015

2015 Distinguished Leadership Awards – Video

Video highlights from the 2015 Distinguished Leadership Awards

Afghanistan

Press Release

Apr 29, 2015

New Atlantic Council Brief Calls for a Reimagining of Pakistan’s Militia Policy

By Atlantic Council

The Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center today launched a new issue brief entitled “Reimagining Pakistan’s Militia Policy.” Written by the Center’s US Pakistan Program Exchange Fellow Yelena Biberman, the brief argues that Pakistan’s unwillingness to crack down on all terrorist groups is more a product of cold calculation than ideological shortsightedness, and calls for powerful […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 28, 2015

Another Voice Silenced in Pakistan

By Huma Haque

It was Friday afternoon and as I was getting ready for the weekend, news broke that Sabeen Mahmud, director of The Second Floor (T2F), had been shot dead in Karachi. Even after reading it a few times, it just did not sink in. I stared blankly. The death of Pakistan’s leading human-rights activist is a […]

Pakistan

Experts