Cambridge IGCSE Pakistan Studies: Industrial Development (0448)

Industrial development is Section 5 of Paper 2 in Cambridge IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448. It defines primary, secondary and tertiary industry, studies ten named processing and manufacturing industries plus tourism, and asks why each is located where it is, how the formal and informal sectors contribute, and how government promotes industrial growth. Good answers link each industry to a named place and to specific location factors.

Where does industry fit in 0448 Paper 2?

Industry depends on the raw materials of Sections 2 and 4 (minerals, cotton, sugar cane) and on the power supply of Section 3. Its products feed into trade (Section 6), its location depends on transport (Section 7), and its jobs link to employment (Section 8). Questions often ask you to connect these sections, for example explaining why cotton textile mills cluster near both cotton-growing areas and the port of Karachi.

Syllabus coverage

CAMBRIDGE IGCSE PAKISTAN STUDIES (0448), 2026 — PAPER 2, SECTION 5: INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT

(a) Understanding common terms

• The terms raw materials, refined, processed, manufactured and value-added
• The terms infrastructure and services
• Definitions of primary, secondary and tertiary industry

(b) Secondary and tertiary industries — cement, cotton (from ginning to clothing), sugar refining, crafts, fertiliser, iron and steel, brick, oil refining, sports goods, surgical instruments; tourism

• Pakistan’s definitions of large-scale, small-scale and cottage industry
• Main products of each industry and whether they go to domestic and/or export markets
• Main locations and the factors influencing them: capital, site, raw materials, power, water, labour, communications, government policy
• Formal and informal sectors: differences, services provided, advantages, disadvantages and contributions
• Sources of capital and labour; how governing authorities promote industrial growth
• Examples, reasons and characteristics of export processing zones and industrial estates
• Feasibility of using global communications for service jobs such as call centres
• Natural and cultural tourist attractions with examples; feasibility of tourism for employment, development, GNP and GDP

What do the key industrial terms mean?

Term	Meaning
Raw material	Natural material used to make something, e.g. raw cotton, limestone
Processed	Changed in form, e.g. cotton ginned and spun into yarn
Refined	Impurities removed, e.g. crude oil into petrol, cane juice into white sugar
Manufactured	Made into a finished product, e.g. cloth into shirts
Value-added	Extra value gained at each stage of processing
Infrastructure	Basic facilities: roads, railways, power, water, telecommunications
Services	Activities that help people rather than make goods: banking, transport, health
Primary industry	Extracting natural resources: farming, fishing, mining, forestry
Secondary industry	Processing and manufacturing
Tertiary industry	Providing services, including tourism

Large-scale industry uses many workers, heavy machinery and large capital in factories. Small-scale industry uses fewer workers in small units. Cottage industry is carried out in homes, often by family members using simple tools.

Where are the listed industries and why?

Industry	Main locations	Key location factors	Market
Cotton textiles	Faisalabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan	Raw cotton nearby; labour; port for exports and imported machinery	Domestic and major export
Sugar refining	Near cane fields in central Punjab, Sindh and the Peshawar valley	Cane is bulky and loses sugar if not crushed quickly	Mainly domestic
Cement	Near limestone and gypsum deposits in the Salt Range, the north-west and near Hyderabad and Karachi	Heavy raw materials; power	Domestic and export
Fertiliser	Near gas fields in Sindh and on gas pipelines in Punjab	Natural gas as raw material and fuel	Domestic
Iron and steel	Pakistan Steel Mills at Pipri, near Port Qasim, Karachi	Imported iron ore and coking coal arrive by sea	Domestic
Oil refining	Karachi, near Rawalpindi (Attock) and near Multan	Imported crude at the coast; local crude in the Potwar; markets	Domestic
Sports goods	Sialkot	Skilled workforce, tradition, export links	Mainly export
Surgical instruments	Sialkot	Skilled metalworkers in small units	Mainly export
Brick	On the edge of most towns	Clay soils, cheap labour, local demand	Domestic
Crafts	Throughout, e.g. carpets, pottery, embroidery	Traditional skills, cottage production	Domestic and export

What is the difference between the formal and informal sectors?

The formal sector is registered with government, pays taxes, keeps accounts and offers regular wages, often with some protection for workers. The informal sector is unregistered: street vendors, roadside mechanics, small workshops, domestic workers. The informal sector provides cheap services and many jobs for people without qualifications, needs little capital, and recycles materials. Its disadvantages are low and irregular pay, no job security, poor working conditions, use of child labour, and lost tax revenue. Both sectors matter: many cotton garments and sports goods pass through small informal workshops before reaching formal-sector exporters.

How does government promote industrial growth?

• Building infrastructure: power, roads, ports, industrial estates.
• Setting up export processing zones (EPZs) with tax and customs concessions. The Karachi EPZ is the best-known example; others include Sialkot and Gwadar.
• Industrial estates such as SITE in Karachi and the Hattar estate in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
• Loans and credit for small and cottage industry; training institutes; tax holidays; incentives for foreign investment.

Why build EPZs? To attract foreign investment, earn foreign exchange, create jobs and bring in new technology. Their characteristics: secure fenced sites, good infrastructure, duty-free import of raw materials and machinery, and production mainly for export.

Can global communications create service jobs?

Call centres and IT services need fast internet links, reliable power and English-speaking, computer-literate workers. Pakistan’s large young workforce and lower wage costs are advantages. Barriers include power cuts, uneven broadband outside big cities, and competition from other countries. Assess feasibility by weighing these.

Is tourism a feasible route to development?

Natural attractions: mountains and valleys such as Hunza, Swat and Naran–Kaghan; peaks of the Karakoram including K2; coastal beaches. Cultural attractions: Mohenjo-daro, Taxila, the Lahore Fort and Badshahi Mosque, Sufi shrines. Tourism creates jobs in hotels, transport and guiding, earns foreign exchange and adds to GNP and GDP. It is limited by poor access to remote areas, concerns about security, seasonal demand, and the risk of environmental damage.

Frequently asked questions

Why is Sialkot so important? It has a long tradition of skilled small-scale manufacturing and is the centre of Pakistan’s sports goods and surgical instrument industries, which are mostly exported.

Why is the steel mill near Karachi? Iron ore and coking coal are mostly imported, so a coastal site near Port Qasim cuts transport costs.

What is value-added? The increase in value when a raw material is processed. Exporting cloth or garments rather than raw cotton earns more foreign exchange.

Related pages

• Industrial Development revision notes
• Industrial Development practice questions
• Agricultural Development study guide
• Power study guide

Source: Cambridge International, Cambridge IGCSE Pakistan Studies 0448 syllabus for examination in 2026, Paper 2 Section 5 Industrial development.