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CArs envoys eye huge trade potential with Pakistan
ISLAMABAD Staff rePort
The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) opened CARs and Azerbaijan Facilitation Desk to help its members in promoting trade and exports with Central Asian Republics and Azerbaijan.
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The Desk was inaugurated by Atadjan Movlamov, Dean of Diplomatic Corps CARs and Ambassador of Turkmenistan, Khazar Farhadov Ambassador of Azerbaijan, Yerzhan Kistafin Ambassador of Kazakhstan, Ismatullo Nasredin Ambassador of Tajikistan and Ulanbek Totuiave Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan during their visit to ICCI, said a press release issued here.
Speaking on the occasion Atadjan Movlamov Dean of Diplomatic Corps CARs and Ambassador of Turkmenistan congratulated ICCI for opening a Facilitation Desk for CARs and Azerbaijan as it would boost Pakistan’s trade ties with these countries.
He said that ICCI should set up a web portal on its websites for CARs to help private sectors of Pakistan and CARs to share business proposals with each other.
Khazar Farhadov, Ambassador of Azerbaijan said that the geographical location of Pakistan is special for CARs and Azerbaijan as these landlocked countries can access many markets through Pakistani ports.
He said Azerbaijan would launch more direct flights with Pakistan to promote people-to-people and B2B ties.
Yerzhan Kistafin Ambassador of
Kazakhstan said that the ICCI Facilitation Desk would be a great milestone to promote trade ties. Direct flights between Almaty and Lahore and in May between Almaty and Karachi will start in April this year.
Ulanbek Totuiave Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan said that his country is keen to promote strong economic ties with Pakistan and said that the Facilitation Desk would help in achieving this goal.
He said that his country will organize the Investment and Business Forum and will invite the ICCI delegation to participate.
Ismatullo Nasredin Ambassador of Tajikistan termed the Facilitation Desk a very good initiative to promote Pakistan’s business relations with CARs and Azerbaijan.
Speaking on the occasion, Ahsan
Zafar Bakhtawari, President, ICCI said that Central Asian Republics (CARs) and Azerbaijan are estimated to be over 90-
rs59 million robbed in Bahadurabad by dacoits
KArACHI Staff rePort billion-dollar market with huge potential for business and investment, however, Pakistan’s trade with these countries is not up to the mark. He said that Pakistan can export many products to these countries including textiles, leather, pharmaceuticals, agricultural products, electrical appliances, communications, machinery and equipment and various services. He said that these countries import a large variety of machinery and equipment from various sources, and Pakistan can become a major exporter of high value products. Similarly, Pakistan can import energy and other products from these countries. He said that Pakistan also provides the shortest routes through its ports to the landlocked CARs for international trade. He hoped that the CARs and Azerbaijan Facilitation Desk at ICCI would help the business community in identifying new areas of promoting trade and investment with these countries.
Police reported that on Wednesday, two dacoits allegedly robbed a man of Rs59.4 million in the Bahadurabad neighbourhood of Karachi. The robbers intercepted the vehicle of one Muhammad Raheel at Shaheed-e-Millat Road and fled the scene after taking the cash. An FIR has been lodged at Bahadurabad police station regarding the incident, and the complainant reported that he was carrying the money in boxes in his vehicle when he was intercepted and robbed. In a separate incident last month, two armed robbers looted a jewellery shop in Karachi’s Clifton area for Rs5 million in cash and gold. According to the shop owner, the robbers entered the shop and held up the staff at gunpoint before making off with the loot.
Faad Waheed, Senior Vice President ICCI said that Pakistan is a gateway for CARs, can import energy and export many products.
Khalid Iqbal Malik Group Leader ICCI stressed that the work on CASA 1000 and TAPI projects should be expedited for their completion which would bring many benefits to Pakistan’s economy.
Zafar Bakhtawari, former President ICCI also spoke on the occasion and highlighted many areas that offer good potential for business collaboration between Pakistan and CARs and Azerbaijan. He stressed the need of regional cooperation and development as the bilateral relations are important, but real economic development is only possible through regional cooperation among Pakistan, CARs & Azerbaijan.
new features introduced to hassle-free obtaining police character certificate: iGP
LAHore
Staff rePort
Punjab Inspector General Police Dr Usman Anwar has taken a historic step to facilitate the innocent citizens entangled by opponents on the basis of false cases, trivial provisions and enmity. The process of issuing and obtaining police character certificate for such citizens have been made easier. In his message to the citizens on social media, Punjab IG Police Dr Usman Anwar said that the system of issuance of police character certificate, which is required for citizens to apply for admission, scholarship, visa, job and immigration abroad, has been upgraded with new features and has also been approved by the Police Executive Board. The IGP said that under the new features, detailed record of the citizens declared innocent by the police investigation and courts will be registered in the character certificate, in which their details will be mentioned with accuracy.
Similarly, the character certificate of the citizens who have been implicated in false cases will be issued with accuracy of record so that these innocent citizens do not have to face problems for employment, obtaining visa, admission in educational institutions or immigration just because of character certificate. Dr Usman Anwar said that the police character certificate of all the citizens of the province who obey laws is clear, but if a citizen is facing difficulties in obtaining the character certificate despite being innocent, he should immediately contact the concerned authorized officer. The IGP said that according to the new features, detailed record of innocent citizens involved in false FIRs will be registered in character certificate so that they do not face any problem and can easily apply not only for admission for education abroad, scholarships, visa, job and immigration, but also be able to proceed with full attention in the fulfillment of their goals FaMIlIes OF lahOre POlIce Martyrs entertaIned: On the instructions of Punjab IG Police Dr Usman Anwar, a series of measures are being taken to honor the families of police martyrs and pay tribute to their sacrifices.
A team of young Pakistani agricultural scientists at the National Research Center of Intercropping (NRCI), the Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB) are researching on strip intercropping technologies with the hope to help their country shrink the import bill of food commodities especially soybean, which already is a huge burden on Pakistan’s economy. It’s remarkable that the ongoing work there originated from their collaboration with China, but has been optimized specially for Pakistan based on the country’s realities, which has been a shining model of SinoPak cooperation in both scientific research and educational exchange. According to Gwadar Pro on Wednesday, since 2018, Dr. Muhammad Ali Raza, a post-doc who is graduated from Sichuan Agricultural University (SAU), China, has started to promote China’s maize-soybean strip intercropping technology in Pakistan with his professor Yang Wenyu’s support and guidance, which has received good response particularly from local industrialists and progressive farmers in the recent years. After years of hard work, he has become a productive agronomist and expert in intercropping research in Pakistan. Under the vision of the IUB Vice Chancellor Prof. Athar Mahboob, the National Research Center of Intercropping was inaugurated on August 11, 2021 to introduce strip intercropping technologies in Pakistan’s agriculture to improve crop yields and soil productivity. Now, Dr. Muhammad Ali Raza acts as the Director of the center, leading intercropping technology’s popularization in Pakistan.
global dividends hit new highs in 2022: study
pArIS afP
Companies around the world paid their shareholders $1.56 trillion in dividends last year, according to a study published on Wednesday. The total is up 8.4 percent from 2021, the previous record year, after rebounding from the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a report by asset manager Janus Henderson. Oil and gas producers and financial firms accounted for half of that growth, according to its Global Dividend Index, which tracks the 1,200 biggest firms by market capitalisation. As skyrocketing energy prices boosted profits, oil and gas producers increased their payouts by more than 66 percent in the form of ordinary or extraordinary dividends, the asset manager said. It said 88 percent of companies increased or held their dividends steady in 2022. Eurozone banks used their renewed ability to pay dividends, after the European Central Bank froze them at the start of the pandemic. Banks and other financial firms contributed to a quarter of last year’s dividend growth, the report said. Soaring freight costs gave a boost to the transport and shipping sectors, but lower commodity prices meant mining dividends fell from their record 2021 high. As the global economy struggles and inflation puts a strain on households around the world, the news of huge corporate profits and payouts has reignited debate about windfall taxes. “For the year ahead, there is more uncertainty over the prospects for dividends,” said Jane Shoemake, portfolio manager at Janus Henderson. It still expects a record $1.6 trillion in dividends paid out, but with a slower growth rate of 2.3 percent. “Inflation, the extent of further rate hikes, and geopolitical risks all cloud the horizon,” Shoemake said.
Construction Of Fish Processing Factory Begins In Gwadar
ISLAMABAD Staff rePort
As various projects gain traction in Gwadar, a Chinese company, Haixintian Pelagic Fishery Overseas Base Company, begins full-scale construction of its fish processing factory in Gwadar Free Zone South (phase 1). Last month, Haixintian Pelagic Fishery Overseas Base Company commenced the importation of its industrial units from China, and construction is now underway for the cold storage and other facilities necessary for the fish industry. To facilitate this, the company has secured a warehouse spanning 5,911 square meters in the Gwadar Free Zone (Phase 1). The warehouse comprises 2,000 square meters of standard workshop space, which will be constructed according to the design of the sublessor. It will be the Gwadar Free Zone’s first fishing and fishing-related factory.
