Category: bussines

LAHORE: The Second Asia Energy Transition Summit opened on Saturday at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) with extensive regional and international participation. Jointly organised by the LUMS Energy Institute (LEI), the Alliance for Climate Justice and Clean Energy (ACJCE) and the Pakistan Renewable Energy Coalition (PREC), the summit brought together senior government representatives, foreign diplomats, global climate leaders, development institutions, researchers and civil society networks from across Asia, Europe and the Pacific to examine the shifting political, financial and technological landscape of Asia’s clean-energy transition. Delivering the inaugural…

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KARACHI: Pakistan, long criticised for inadequate public service delivery, now sees a rare opportunity to leap into modern governance through technology. But its race towards a digitally enabled future depends on whether it can overcome deep connectivity gaps, high infrastructure costs, and sluggish fibre-to-the-home penetration, as the government rolls out an ambitious National Fiberisation Plan aimed at delivering high-speed broadband to 10 million households by 2029. While the initiative promises 100 Mbps fixed internet for every user and aims to elevate the country into the top 50 global speed rankings,…

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ISLAMABAD: The government on Saturday directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to resolve the credit crisis being faced by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as they need financing to sustain their operations as well as give a fresh push to their businesses. Representatives from the medium-sized enterprises have called for a shift from the normal tax regime to the fixed tax system, citing the need for a simpler and more predictable taxation framework. Expressing dismay at taxation and high energy costs, the SMEs argue that they have no easy…

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ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Industries and Production Haroon Akhtar Khan has assured the auto industry that the government is fully aware of its concerns over the import of used vehicles. He said that, on the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, new legislation and regulatory frameworks would be introduced to address those issues comprehensively. “Only those used vehicles that meet safety and environmental standards will be allowed to enter Pakistan,” he emphasised. The PM aide held a meeting with a delegation of the auto industry to…

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ISLAMABAD: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan’s (SECP) policy board unanimously dropped all agenda items while expressing displeasure over what members described as an “ill-timed” set of financial proposals. The policy board held an extraordinary meeting on Thursday at the SECP head office. According to sources, the agenda included upgrading vehicles of SECP directors from 1,300cc to 1,500cc engine capacity, removing the requirement of the federal cabinet’s approval for foreign tours of SECP officials and introducing significant amendments to the HR manual, including easing the performance evaluation procedures by…

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KARACHI: Saudi Arabia has extended the maturity of its $3 billion deposit placed with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for another year, continuing a financial lifeline that has helped bolster the country’s foreign exchange reserves amid ongoing liquidity challenges. The extension, made through the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), maintains a facility that has been in place since 2021 and rolled over repeatedly in support of Pakistan’s macroeconomic stability. The deposit, originally due to mature on December 8, 2025, will now remain parked with SBP until December 2026. Officials…

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ISLAMABAD: The government and oil industry have entered into a deadlock over the installation of auto tank gauging (ATG) system at petrol pumps to monitor the sale and purchase of petroleum products. The government wants to set a target of installing 5% ATG at retail outlets and expand the tagging to 100% in a year. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) wants to install ATG following the model of the track and trace system installed in industries. The Oil Companies Advisory Council (OCAC) had written a letter to the Oil…

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KARACHI: Rising temperatures driven by climate change are pushing thousands of Karachi’s textile and garment workers into dangerous heat exposure, where employees describe fainting, dehydration, headaches and physical collapse inside factories that lack basic cooling, ventilation or medical support. A new investigative report by Climate Rights International (CRI) – “They Don’t See What Heat Does to Our Bodies”: Climate Change, Labour Rights, and the Cost of Fashion in Karachi, Pakistan – warns that many workplaces grow hotter than the temperature outside, especially during peak summer months, when machinery, fabric and…

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ISLAMABAD: The Universal Service Fund (USF) is poised to achieve a major milestone under the prime minister’s Digital Pakistan vision with the approval of nine new telecom projects valuing at Rs13.05 billion. These projects are set to provide high-speed internet and voice services to 5.55 million un-served and underserved residents across 178 towns/union councils and 753 mauzas of 11 districts across the country, significantly empowering the rural population to participate in the digital economy and connect with the digital world, said a press release. Six projects will deliver high-speed broadband…

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ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja has stressed that under the INSPIRE initiative, 7,200 young Pakistanis will be trained in advanced semiconductor technologies, supported by the establishment of nine IC (integrated circuit) design labs across university clusters nationwide, to strengthen Pakistan’s hardware and chip-design ecosystem. A high-level delegation comprising Louisa Odell, Innovation and Technology Adviser at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO); Michael Unwin, Strategic Partnership Lead, Technology & Innovation Unit, FCDO; and Kimberly Brown, Global Head of Mobile for Humanitarian, GSMA, called on…

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