Day: November 24, 2021

Prime Minister Imran Khan has accorded approval to the merger of Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority into National Disaster Management Authority.

Presiding over a meeting of the ERRA Council in Islamabad today [Wednesday], he issued directives to hand over 2,200 completed projects of ERRA to the concerned provincial governments and departments and for early completion of 230 under-progress projects by the year’s end.

The Prime Minister stressed considering proper guidelines of construction in areas on geological fault lines to sustain earthquakes.

 

 

Source: Radio Pakistan

Executive Committee of the National Economic Council has approved Sialkot–Kharian Motorway project costing Rs.43,382.552 million for construction of 69 kilometer long, 04-lane wide Sambrial- Kharian Motorway.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Mr. Shaukat Tarin, chaired the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting today.

Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Mr. Asad Umer, Federal Minister for Industries and Production, Makhdoom Khusroo Bakhtiar, Federal Secretaries and other senior officers from Federal as well as Provincial Government participated in the meeting.

ECNEC approved Pakistan Optical Remote Sensing Satellite (PRSS-02) project of SUPARCO worth of Rs. 27,913.567 Million. The project will help building of an indigenous capacity in the fields of space /satellite technology and its applications, institutional capacity building of SUPARCO and promote high-tech R & D activities in the country. This project will contribute in acquisition of self-reliance in satellite technologies in Pakistan.

ECNEC approved Sialkot (Sambrial) – Kharian Motorway project submitted by Ministry of Communication with total project cost Rs.43,382.552 Million, along with directions to NHA to present progress on development of business model to ECC. The project envisages construction of 69-km long, 04-lane wide Sambrial- Kharian Motorway with structures to be constructed for 06 lanes. Forum especially lauded the efforts of Planning Commission and M/o Communication for finalizing this project on PPP basis. ECNEC also gave approval to the New Gwadar International Airport(NGIA) 2nd revised project worth of 51,298.175 Million rupees. The 2nd revised project envisages construction of New Gwadar International Airport (NGIA) along with allied facilities over a piece of land already acquired. NGIA will replace the existing airport at Gwadar which has small terminal building with limited capacity. The new airport will be suitable for bigger aircrafts like Airbus A-380 and Boeing -747 & 777 etc for international and domestic services. ECNEC also approved the project of Ministry of Energy on ADB Funded Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) in IESCO at a cost of $455.5 million, with directives to start the project without any delay as a pilot project and include other electric supplying companies. The project envisages enhancing load control and loading management up to the interface of the electricity distribution system operated by the distribution companies (DISCOs). The AMI project is designed as a least cost solution to reduce losses and efficiently balancing supply in the specific areas of IESCO.

ECNEC also approved the position paper for amendments in the ECNEC decision, 2004 and for approval of Self-Finance Development Schemes of distribution companies/entities, submitted by Ministry of Energy.

ECNEC also approved Remodelling of Warsak Canal System in Peshawar and Nowshera districts worth o Rs. 16,695.81 Million. The 2nd revised PC-1 was considered on 50:50 cost sharing basis between Federal and Provincial Government. Any variation in the cost of the project will be borne by the provincial government. ECNEC approved Higher Education Development in Pakistan (HEDP- revised) project by HEC worth of Rs. 12,782 Million financed by World Bank. The project activities will be executed throughout Pakistan. The ECNEC Also considered a project Pak University of Engineering & Emerging Technologies (PUEET) Phase-I (Knowledge Economy Initiative) of HEC with a cost of Rs. 23.54 Billion. PUEET would be a research and commercialization university, which would house various centres of excellence in the cutting-edge fields of science and technology and a state-of-the-art- technology park.

ECNEC gave approval to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Cities Improvement Project (KPCIP) at a cost of Rs. 97,146 Million. KPCIP will improve the quality of life of the residents of five KP cities including Abbottabad, Kohat, Mardan, Mingora and Peshawar directly benefitting about 6 Million of urban population.

Forum also approved the construction of 10th Avenue from IJP road to Srinagar Highway Islamabad at a total cost of Rs. 12.139 billion. Project would be executed in two phases and would be completed in two year’s time.

Forum deferred the decision on Greater Thar Canal Project with directions to relevant stakeholders, both at Federal and Provincial level, to reach a consensus amongst themselves prior to its resubmission to ECNEC.

 

 

Source: Radio Pakistan

In an interesting development, a certain news item published in the national daily, The News, titled, “Govt couldn’t purchase gas Cargoes in time, admits Tarin,” has been dubbed by the Finance Ministry as misleading and out of context.

When the anchor, Nadeem Malik, asked about the gas shortfall situation in the country, the Finance Minister stated the reasons, including the ongoing global LNG shortages, which have created the fiasco, and it was not in control of anybody.

The Finance Division maintains that the government has been buying the gas as required, despite higher international prices. However, he has mentioned there was one tender scrapped in July, but this has nothing to do with winter gas. The Finance Adviser has not mentioned, at any point, that winter gas shortfalls are due to non-procurement of LNG on time.

It is also clarified that very little LNG is diverted to domestic gas consumers because of the high price differential and the gas shortages in winter, which we face every year due to the depletion of our local gas fields.

 

 

Source: Pro Pakistani

Ministry of Maritime Affairs has informed the Senate Committee that 40-45 Chinese companies are being dislocated from China and anticipated to set up their plants in Pakistan, especially in Gwadar, in the next two years.

The Senate Standing Committee on Maritime Affairs met on Wednesday under the Chairmanship of Senator Rubina Khalid. The Committee was briefed on Blue Economy, its major sectors, and initiatives by the Ministry to spearhead the Blue Economy.

At the outset of the meeting, the committee members expressed their concern on the problems faced by the residents of the coastal areas of Sindh and Baluchistan. “We don’t need schools, we need clean drinking water for children,” stated Senator Naseema Ehsan while lamenting the conditions of the local people around the coastal areas.  The Secretary Ministry of Maritime Affairs said that the issue comes in the domain of the provincial government. Senator Moula Bux Chandio proposed that the Ministry should write to the provincial government to address the problem of clean drinking water and other concerns of the local residents near the coastal areas.

The Committee received a detailed briefing on Blue Economy by the Secretary. The Committee was apprised that the estimated value of ocean assets around the world is about $24 trillion, and the world has ranked Blue economy at ‘seventh’ if compared to the top 10 global economies (WWF-2015). The Committee was informed that after the approval of the claim by the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the continental shelf in 2015, Pakistan had achieved a maritime territory of 350 NM (nautical miles), which comprises 200 NM of Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and an area of 150 NM as the continental shelf.

The maritime sovereignty of Pakistan has been established on a total area of 290,000 sq. km, which makes up 36.4 percent of the mainland of the country.  On a question asked by Senator Abida Muhammad Azeem, the Secretary replied that constitutionally 12 NM are associated with the provinces, and 8 NM is a Buffer zone, non-fishing area. The non-fishing area is for the reproduction and growth of the fishes, and these fishes are confined for fishing by the local fishermen only. The Secretary informed the Committee that the Federal Government regulated fishing beyond 20 NM miles and deals in marine fishing.

While briefing on the Blue Economy the Committee was informed that CPEC had brought forward potential prospects of development along the Makran Coast, which will pave way for maritime tourism and aqua/marine-culture contributing to the National Economy.

The Committee was also informed that a summary was submitted to the Prime Minister through stake-holding Ministries/Division with a proposal for bringing numerous maritime functions, presently assigned to different Ministries, under the umbrella of Single Ministry.

A coordination mechanism in the form of the National Maritime Board (NMB) and National Maritime Coordination Committee (NMCC) was also proposed for addressing issues/development of the Blue Economy in Pakistan. Senator Nuzhat Sadiq inquired whether or not the Navy is a stakeholder in Blue Economy. The Secretary said that the Navy is an integral part of the Blue Economy, however, commercial shipping is not in the domain of the Navy.

The Committee was also informed that Maritime Affairs is working in collaboration with the World Bank to advance the development of the Blue Economy Road map. The Committee recommended the Ministry also work in collaboration with the World Bank to launch a project for the provision of clean drinking water for the people of coastal areas.

The Committee was also informed that up to 40-45 Chinese companies are being dislocated from China and anticipated to set up their plants in Pakistan. Gwadar port and free Zone tax exemptions have also been approved in Finance bill 2020-21.

The Committee inquired whether or not the local people have a share in the industries. The Ministry informed the Committee that the people of Gwadar will be given preference in the jobs. The Ministry also informed that a vocational institute is also being established to train the residents of Gwadar for better job opportunities.

 

 

Source: Pro Pakistani

The Pakistani Rupee (PKR) has broken its winning streak against the US Dollar (USD) once again and depreciated 73 paisas against the greenback in the interbank market.

It depreciated by 0.42 percent against the USD and closed at Rs. 175.04 today after it posted gains of 46 paisas and closed at Rs. 174.30 in the interbank market on Tuesday, 23 November.

With a fresh but nervous surge in valuation, the PKR was on course to engage positive trends as the exchange ledger projected bullish sentiments at the beginning of this week. The local currency had recently closed at an all-time low of Rs. 175.73 against the greenback on 12 November, and today’s market close was not far off.

The Rupee has succumbed yet again to bearish signals threatening to delaminate all the progress made in the last 72 hours. The market has projected positive growth for the long term so far but the near-term outlook betrays the recurrent emergence of storm-tossed trends as fiscal measures indicate how urgent reforms may get delayed, which the economy cannot afford in the meantime.

Furthermore, the latest agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) involved Pakistan making a big deal out of receiving a tranche of $1 billion as the release of these funds is yet to be approved by the international lender.

The former Treasury Head of Chase Manhattan Bank, Asad Rizvi, discussed the Rupee’s interbank showing in a tweet earlier today that read: “For [the] most part, in [the] last couple of days, market conditions remained choppy. By the close of the day #PKR managed to recover gaining 95 paisa[s] or 0.55% in 2-days”.

He concluded with a warning: “Staff level agreement with IMF is supporting the Rupee. Action is required in 4-areas. Delay is not affordable”.

The PKR failed to post gains against the other major currencies as well and posted losses in the inter-bank currency market today.

It lost Rs.1.13 against the Canadian Dollar (CAD), 60 paisas against the Australian Dollar (AUD), and 80 paisas against the Pound Sterling (GBP).

The Rupee re-entered its decrepit sway against the resurgent Euro (EUR) after it posted losses of 79 paisas against the eurozone currency. It also posted blanket losses of one paisa against the Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) and 10 paisas against the Chinese Yuan (CNY).

Moreover, it posted losses of 20 paisas against the UAE Dirham (AED) and 19 paisas against the Saudi Riyal (SAR) in the interbank currency market today.

 

 

Source: Pro Pakistani

The GDP [Gross Domestic Product] growth of Pakistan is expected to stay within the range of 4-5 percent in the fiscal year (FY) 2021-22, according to the annual State of the Economy report of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for 2020-21.

The report highlights that a broad-based recovery in real GDP growth was recorded. Led by the favorable supply and demand dynamics as well as a low base effect from the Covid-led contraction in FY20, large-scale manufacturing posted a 14.9 percent increase in FY21.

Though the growth in agriculture was slightly lower than in FY20, the production of wheat, rice and maize rose to historic levels. The cumulative increase in the production of these crops offset the decline in cotton production. The improvement in the commodity-producing sectors and a surge in imports led to a sharp recovery in wholesale and trade services in FY21.

The report also notes that the economic rebound was achieved without a worsening of macroeconomic imbalances, as the overall policy mix was still prudent. The current account deficit reduced substantially amid record-high workers’ remittances and export receipts and contributed to the US$ 5.2 billion increase in the SBP’s foreign exchange reserves during the year.

The country also retained access to sizable external financing, with inflows received from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other multilateral and bilateral creditors, the issuance of Eurobonds after a long hiatus and deposits and investments from non-resident Pakistanis via the Roshan Digital Accounts.

The report expects the economic recovery during FY21 to gain further momentum in FY22. The recovery is evident from the significant increase in machinery and raw material imports, continued expansion in consumer financing, and strong uptrend in domestic sales as seen from high-frequency demand indicators.

This year-on-year (YoY) improvement is likely to surface owing to the accommodative monetary policy stance, the pro-growth measures outlined in the FY22 budget, the government’s focus on revival of the construction industry under the “Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme”, and the mandatory housing finance targets by SBP.

The SBP expects the sharp expansion in development spending to give a push to construction and allied industries. Similarly, the extension in the social safety envelope under Benazir Income Support Program is expected to smoothen consumption patterns of the economically vulnerable segments.

The report says that for businesses, tax and duty incentives for raw materials and capital goods, and the availability of power subsidies, are likely to enhance economic activities and support private investments.

The agriculture sector is also projected to further benefit from the support packages for the Kharif and Rabi crops, which would, in turn, cast a positive effect on the services sector as well.

In the fiscal sector, the government plans to continue with the adjustment measures, which are projected to reduce the deficit to 6.3 percent of GDP, from 7.1 percent in FY21. The fiscal deficit, the report adds, could be within a range of 6.3 to 7.3 percent of GDP for FY22.

According to the report, the Corporate Income Tax (CIT) reforms announced in March 2021 are likely to support the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) tax collection by eliminating various income tax exemptions and normalization of tax rates.

The sustained turnaround in sales of petroleum products is also expected to increase collection from the petroleum development levy.

Despite pressures emerging from the import side, SBP expects that the current account deficit to be within the range of 2.0 to 3.0 percent of GDP during FY22. Imports are expected to remain between $62.5 billion and $63.5 billion by the end of the financial year.

A part of the expansion in the import payments is projected to be financed through a consistent increase in the workers’ remittances and export receipts. The central bank expects remittances inflows in the range of $30.5 billion to $32.5 billion by the end of the current financial year. Similarly, exports receipts of the country will remain buoyant in the range of $26.5 billion to $27.5 billion.

The national consumer price index (CPI) inflation is expected to remain within a range of 7.0 to 9.0 percent. The report expects better commodity management practices, especially the build-up of reserves for wheat and sugar, to contain supply-side pressures from seeping into the inflation during FY22.

 

 

Source: Pro Pakistani

Digital transformation can help Pakistan unlock up to Rs. 9.7 trillion ($59.7 billion) in annual economic value by 2030, equivalent to about 19 percent of the country’s GDP in 2020, according to a new report commissioned by Google.

The report—released at the Google/P@SHA online event, “Unlocking Pakistan’s Digital Potential”—finds that Pakistan has a thriving technology sector. The country is home to more than 300,000 IT professionals, produces over 25,000 IT graduates annually, and has nurtured over 700 tech start-ups since 2010.

Technology exports have grown 15 percent per year since 2020 and are expected to reach $3.5 billion in 2022. Pakistan’s online population has grown rapidly, and the internet penetration rate is reaching 54 percent in 2021.

Despite these many achievements, Pakistan can go further in its digital transformation journey. The report, prepared by economists at AlphaBeta, identifies three main pillars of action Pakistan could take to reach the projected growth opportunity. This includes developing infrastructure to support the local tech ecosystem, continuing to create a conducive environment for IT export, and promoting innovation and digital skills in the country.

There are eight key technologies that hold transformative potential for businesses and workers and can create significant economic value for Pakistan. These include the mobile internet, cloud computing, big data, AI, fintech, IoT and remote sensing, advanced robotics, and additive manufacturing.

Farhan Qureshi, Regional Director Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, Google, believes that despite the setbacks caused by the pandemic, the future for Pakistan’s digital economy is bright.

“Digital transformation is vital for Pakistan to address the long-term implications of the COVID-19 pandemic and build long-term resilience and growth. At Google, we aim to play our part by equipping Pakistanis with helpful products and tools, tech know-how, and online safety skills. Going forward, we will continue working with partners like P@SHA and the various government agencies to help fulfill the Digital Pakistan Vision” said the Country Director.

Qureshi continued, “In order to be effective, digital transformation has to be inclusive. It is essential to make digital training opportunities accessible also to underrepresented communities and vulnerable groups. We recently launched a pilot program with the National Rural Support Programme to equip more Pakistanis with online safety skills and digital literacy and reached more than 1,000 students in just two months. Our Grow with Google programme has trained over 5,500 SMEs on how to leverage digital tools to support the development of a digitally skilled workforce.”

Dr. Arif Alvi, President of Pakistan, added, “I was encouraged to see AlphaBeta’s finding that digital transformation could create Rs. 9.7 trillion in annual economic value in Pakistan by 2030. Realizing this goal and the vision of Digital Pakistan will require a whole-of-nation approach, from both the public and private sectors. The efforts of groups like Google and P@SHA will be key. It is heartening to note that, according to AlphaBeta’s report, over 410,000 jobs are supported in Pakistan’s economy through the use of Google’s products.”

Badar Khushnood, Chairman Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) for IT & IT-enabled Services (ITeS), also shared, “P@SHA represents thousands of technology companies and has been at the forefront of the #DigitalPakistan revolution. Our industry has seen record-breaking growth over the last few years, and we strive to take it to the next level. P@SHA envisions unleashing the potential of the IT and ITeS industry in Pakistan from all perspectives! To stay true to our vision, we focus on leading the industry narrative.

From policy advocacy to ecosystem enablement and in-depth research and insights, P@SHA interventions have had a significant impact over the last two decades.”

He further said, “P@SHA continues to work closely with relevant public and private sector stakeholders to not only accelerate growth in software and services exports but also fast-track digital transformation in domestic sectors of the economy as well. Google and P@SHA’s relationship continues to grow, and we look forward to further strengthening this win-win synergy for Pakistan’s brighter and more vibrant digital ecosystem.”

Krinza Momin, former GDSC Lead & Jr. Data Scientist at Afiniti, also joined the event to share her views about the Pakistan developer community. She remarked, “With the efforts that Google is plugging in for Pakistan, I am glad that we have platforms such as Google Developer Student Clubs, Google Developer Groups, Women Techmakers, and Google Developer Experts to be a part of. These programs enabled me and many others to have conversations with industry experts in Pakistan and worldwide which also created global avenues for us to learn from. Pakistan can truly position itself around startups and innovation to fuel economic prosperity and efforts like this event by P@SHA and Google make the destination one step closer.”

 

 

Source: Pro Pakistani