A Comparative Study of Parliamentary & Presidential Systems of Government: Economic Implications for Pakistan

Abstract

Political  stability  is  mandatory  for  economic  prosperity.  Pakistan continues to struggle on the path to attaining a genuine and stable democratic system. Absence of political stability has led to constant changes in forms of governments in Pakistan throughout its history. Whether a system of government is directly linked with the economic implications  is  undecided?  This  research  paper  aims  to  find  the answer  by  examining  how  a  system  of  government  impacts  the performance  of  an  economy  in  a  country.  The  primary  aim  of  this paper  was  to  analyze  the  economic  implications  for  Pakistan  via comparative  study  of  parliamentary  and  presidential  systems  of governments.  Pakistan  has  one  of  the  lowest  per  capita  income economies  and  trade-to-GDP  ratios  showing  at  just  30  per  cent according to a recent report published by Asian Development Bank. However, it is not all doom and gloom and the country has a lot of room  for  improvement.  Therefore,  this  paper  fills  this  gap  and examines which system of government can help the economic system to flourish more through a comparative study of parliamentary and presidential   form   of   government.   The   paper   provides   new perspectives  into  assessing  presidential  and  parliamentary  systems and  their  role  in  economic  development  of  Pakistan.  The  study proposes  how  economic  development  can  be  achieved  under  a democratic system.