UAE-Pakistan Development Cooperation: A Model for South–South Cooperation in a Multipolar World

ABSTRACT

This article examines the UAE-Pakistan relationship in areas related to the UAE’s role as one of Pakistan’s emerging development partners. We examine the ways in which this relationship has evolved and rather than repeating the frequently made argument that the relationship is coloured by a mix of resource imbalances and differences in perception, we argue that both states are poised to play a key role in leveraging each other’s national priorities as part of changing regional dynamics. Looking at this issue via the aid/development sphere offers a unique lens through which to view the changing national interests of both states as served by an alternate and unique model for South–South cooperation. The UAE can engage in low-cost, low-risk, high-impact development assistance as it builds towards a more resource-conscious, region-focused aid policy. And for Pakistan, despite recent differences with the GCC states (including the UAE), a bolstered development relationship with the UAE would contribute to overcoming one of the main critiques highlighted by various post-development theorists – that aid flows into South Asia, and Pakistan in particular, reinforces socio-cultural hegemony of great powers and their dominance of the development space as part of wider securitisation agendas.

KEYWORDS:

• Pakistan
• UAE
• Pak-UAE bilateral aid
• South-South cooperation
• Development Security Nexus

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. Almazroui, ‘Why Is Pakistan Not Supporting?’

2. Tok and D’Alessandro, ‘Khaleeji mode of development’, 6–10.

3. Khan and Asghar, ‘Study of Aid Dependency’, 156–165; Khan and Ahmed, ‘Foreign aid – blessing or curse’, 215–240.

4. Kamran, ‘Pak-Gulf Defence and Security; Ahmed and Bhatnagar, ‘Gulf States and India-Pakistan’.

5. Duffield, ‘Liberal way of development’, 53–76.

6. Cochrane, ‘UAE as Global Donor ‘, 49–62; Al-Mezaini, ‘From Identities to Politics’.

7. Tok and D’Alessandro, Khaleeji mode of development’, 6–10.

8. Bajwa, ‘Keynote Address’.

9. Buzan, Wæver and De Wilde, ‘Security: A New Framework’; Brown and Grävingholt, ‘Security, Development and Foreign Aid’. Securitisation here refers to what Jaap de Wilde, Ole Waever and Barry Buzan articulated as a more extreme form of politicisation by ‘presenting an issue as an existential threat, requiring emergency measures and justifying actions outside the normal bounds of political procedure’.

10. Fair, ‘US Aid to Pakistan’.

11. Ahmed and Martinez-Zarzoso, ‘Blessing or curse’, 38–66.

12. Ahmed, ‘Perils of foreign incomel’, 148.

13. Ahmed and Martinez-Zarzoso, ‘Blessing or curse’, 38–66.

14. Khan and Asghar, ‘Study of Aid Dependency’, 156–165.

15. USIP, ‘Maximising the Impact of Aid’.

16. Khan and Ahmed, ‘Foreign aid – blessing or curse’, 215–240; Fair, ‘US Aid to Pakistan’; Khan, ‘Aid and Governance ‘, 59–78.

17. Duffield, ‘The Development-Security Nexus’.

18. Total Receipts, Net (ODA+OOF+private) (2010–2018): in addition to Official Development Assistance, this heading includes in particular: other official bilateral transactions which are not concessional or which, even though they have concessional elements, are primarily trade facilitating in character (i.e. “Other Official Flows’’); changes in bilateral long-term assets of the private non-monetary and monetary sectors, in particular guaranteed export credits, private direct investment, portfolio investment and, to the extent they are not covered in the preceding headings, loans by private banks. Flows from the multilateral sector which are not classified as concessional are also included here. Source OECD.stat.

19. Tweeted by @realDonaldTrump, ‘The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years’, 1 January 2018.

20. Wells, ‘Conversation with Alice Wells on CPEC’.

21. Dreher et al., ‘Aid, China, and Growth’.

22. Wells, ‘Conversation with Alice Wells on CPEC’.

23. ReliefWeb, ‘UAE Named World’s Largest’, 10 April 2018.

24. Ibid.

25. Ulrichsen, ‘The United Arab Emirates’.

26. Ibid.

27. Davidson, ‘Power and Politics’.

28. Ibid.

29. Freer, ‘Rentier Islamism’.

30. Snider, ’UAE’.

31. Soubrier, ‘Evolving Foreign and Security Policies’; Al-Mezaini, ‘From Identities to Politics’.

32. Gökalp, ‘The UAE’s Humanitarian Diplomacy’.

33. Al-Mezaini, ‘From Identities to Politics’.

34. Ulrichsen, ‘South-South Cooperation’, 103–123.

35. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, ‘UAE Foreign Aid’.

36. Ibid.

37. Ibid.

38. The Official Portal Of The UAE Government, ‘The UAE’s Aid’.

39. Ibid.

40. AKHBAR ALSAA, ‘The Role of the UAE In Global Development’.

41. WAM, ‘UAE, US Sign MOU s’, 27 October 2020.

42. Saleem, ‘Pakistan: A decade’.

43. Afzal, ‘Terrorism in Pakistan has declined’.

44. Hussain, ‘No-Win War’. See for a detailed and recent overview of US – Pak Relations.

45. ReliefWeb, ‘UAE leads reconstruction efforts’, 6 February 2011.

46. Ibid.

47. Albright, ‘Maximizing the Impact’.

48. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, UAE Foreign Aid Report; UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, UAE Foreign Aid Report.

49. ARY News, ‘Pakistan To Soon Receive‘, 9 March 2019.

50. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE, Pakistan Enjoy Historic Ties ‘, 1 January 2020.

51. These are common program categories across UAE development reports.

52. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE Foreign Aid Report’; UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE Foreign Aid Report’.

53. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE Foreign Aid Report’.

54. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE Foreign Aid Report’.

55. Ibid.

56. Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation, ‘Project Details’.

57. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE Annual Foreign Aid Report’.

58. ADFD, ‘Pakistan Programs’.

59. UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘UAE Foreign Aid Report’.

60. Ibid.

61. Ibid.

62. Ibid.

63. Ibid.

64. WAM, ‘Work Begins On 40‘, 5 January 2019.

65. ISPR, ‘No PR-86/2014-ISPR’.

66. Uaepap.Org, ‘UAEPAP’.

67. ReliefWeb, ‘UAE leads reconstruction efforts’, 6 February 2011.

68. Mukhtar, Bombed by the Taliban: UAE brings schools to thousands denied an education in Pakistan.

69. ReliefWeb, ‘UAE PAP implements’, 8 December 2014.

70. FATF, ‘United Arab Emirates 2020’.

71. Ahmed, ‘The Thistle and the Drone’.

72. Roul, ‘The Pakistani Taliban’s Campaign Against Polio Vaccination’. Dr. Afridi had played a pivotal role in helping identify Bin Laden and his family under the guise of a fake Hepatitis B vaccination program run by Western aid agencies. This had adversely affected the credibility of Western linked aid agencies in these areas.

73. Ahmed, ‘The Thistle and the Drone’.

74. News One, ‘DG ISPR All praise’, 25 February 2018.

75. ISPR, ‘No PR-285/2015-ISPR’.

76. Dawn, ‘Generous Support’, 21 December 2018.

77. ARY News, ‘Pakistan To Soon Receive‘, 9 March 2019.

78. Arab News Pakistan, ‘Saudi Arabia, UAE, China’, 25 April 2021.

79. Aamir, ‘Terror-financing grey listing’.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Joshua Snider

Dr. Joshua Snider currently serves an Assistant Professor of International Security Studies at UAE National Defense College in Abu Dhabi. His research focusses on non-traditional security, the development-security nexus and state responses to religious extremism and the governance of counter-radicalisation programmes in the MENA and Indo-Pacific regions.

Mohammad Waqas Jan

Mr. Mohammad Waqas Jan is a Senior analyst at the G5 Internet Observatory. He holds hands-on research experience in South Asian Peace, Conflict and Security Studies with a key emphasis on China’s rise, the Kashmir conflict, nuclear signaling/posturing and the importance of socially constructed norms and historicised narratives in diplomatic relations.