TODAY is Independence Day. On the back of Arshad Nadeem’s victory in the Olympics this one appears to be a bit less grim than the ones immediately preceding it. As many commentators have opined at length, the victory of an underdog for an underdog nation points to possibilities and in doing so charges the engine of hope. And yet, while the underdog’s story is the material that will fuel the dreams of many millions, a moment must also be spent on reflecting on the world into which we are bringing future underdogs.

Aug 12 marked the annual UN commemoration of International Youth Day. As the world hurtles into ever greater paroxysms of chaos and turmoil, it is becoming increasingly difficult to take these regular commemorations seriously. In this case, however, in a country made up mostly of youth, taking a moment to consider the sort of world into which we are bringing even more young ones seems like a worthwhile use of time.

It is not news to anyone that Pakistan is experiencing what is euphemistically referred to as the ‘youth bulge’, an unusually large youth cohort — in Pakistan’s over 60 per cent of the population is under the age of 30, and around 30pc in the 15- to 29-years bracket.

The problem, of course, is that when this topic or these figures are offered up, too many people succumb to the fallacy that more is always good. Instead of understanding that having a large population of youngsters........

© Dawn