Balochistan, having a history of barely 500 years, that too rather scanty, with diverse semi-desert arid landscape encompassing 43% of Pakistan’s landmass, is the southwestern province of Pakistan and is home to some 12 million people. Due to traditional sparse precipitation, the land has remained unproductive since the ancient times gripping equally sparse population in relentless poverty. The semi-desert, mountainous terrain, vast distances with no water, harsh climate, extreme temperatures have however, made the people living here, hardy, determined, conditioned to face challenges and develop in spite of the limitations of geography.

The growth of academia in Balochistan slowly started from a few high schools initially from the time of Independence in 1947 to universities from 1973 onwards. The Balochistan Think Tank Network (BTTN) is the newest addition in the academia of the Province being the first Research Center. It was created barely a year ago with a vision to be the leading research-oriented and credible policy Think Tank. The aim of the BTTN is to promote research culture focused on socio-economic development, stability and national integration by mapping pathways for sustainable policy solutions for the decision makers. It pursues quality research based on investigation, literature research, ground realities and by gathering unbiased knowledge through investigation and interaction with the stakeholders. Its goal is to earn credibility amongst the academia, intellectuals and opinion / decision-makers of Pakistan in general and Balochistan in particular. Accordingly, in line with its vision and mission, BTTN launched its Research Journal (BTTN Journal) in December 2021 while successfully publishing its first issue in July 2022.