An attractive view of autumn season at rose and jasmine garden in Federal Capital.
Vendors displaying currency garlands to attract the customers at Flower Market
Female labourer packing the tomatoes in the wood box at Vegetables Market.
Federal Minister for IT & Telecom Syed Amin Ul Haque inaugurates Public key Infrastructure (PKI) for National Root Certification Authority
Federal Minister for Education, Professional Training Rana Tanveer Hussain addressing during the inauguration ceremony of Live Skills Based Education Workshop at Allam Iqbal Open University
Saudi Arabia committed to rescue Pakistan’s economy, says ex-envoy Ali Asseri
ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP): Saudi Arabia is committed to avert Pakistan’s current economic crisis worsened by the recent flood disaster, as this is crucial for achieving political stability and safeguarding national security, said Kingdom’s former ambassador to Pakistan, Dr Ali Awadh Asseri.
“This is clear from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s personal resolve for not only addressing Pakistan’s immediate financial needs but also guaranteeing long-term investments in the energy sector,” he said while speaking on Wednesday at the Islamabad Conclave organised by the Institute of Strategic Studies, Islamabad.
“I have no doubt that that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has the ability, courage and will to take Pakistan forward. And, he can count on the Saudi nation and its leadership for whatever support is needed for economic and political stability,” said Dr Asseri, who is currently a board member at RASANAH, the premier Saudi think-tank on Iranian affairs.
The second round of Islamabad Conclave, titled “75 Years of Independence: Achieving Comprehensive National Security,” includes several prominent speakers from home and abroad in five working groups. Dr Asseri spoke on “Enhancing Pakistan’s Economic Outreach to Saudi Arabia and the GCC.”
“The Saudi Vision 2030 offers enormous opportunities for Pakistan’s trade and investment relationship with the Kingdom and employing its skilled manpower in mega development projects,” said the former ambassador while urging the government to take remedial measures such as promoting vocational training and commercial linkages.
He also said that a major transformation was under way in Pak-Saudi economic relations, whereby the Kingdom is interested in long-term investment in Pakistan’s development sector while continuing to shore up its foreign reserves.
He said, Saudi leadership was committed to invest $20 billion dollars in refinery, petrochemical complex, mining and renewable energy projects in Pakistan. But there is also tremendous scope for Saudi public and private investment in other sectors such as textiles, sports, leather goods and surgical equipment,” Dr Asseri added.
“We have a unique, profound and durable relationship in the political, security, economic and cultural spheres of cooperation. There is no doubt that this brotherly bond will reach new heights under our dynamic and visionary leaderships,” he added.
President stresses quality improvement in civil service with ‘right person for right job’
ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP):President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday called for bringing qualitative improvement in the civil service by ensuring the selection of the right person for the right job, besides updating the examination process for recruitment.
The president said the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC), being the top examining authority of the country, should be perfect and should match the world standards in terms of its members’ skill set, examination, and selection procedures for government departments.
He made these remarks during a meeting with FPSC Chairman Captain (retd) Zahid Saeed, who called on him to present the Annual Report 2021 of FPSC, here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr. FPSC Secretary Syed Hasnain Mehdi, and senior officials of the Establishment Division and President’s Secretariat attended the meeting.
The president said for the interviews, standard questions should be selected and evaluated, and the response of the interviewer should be calibrated and quantified on a statistical and scientific basis.
These methods, he said, should be continuously improved upon by benchmarking best practices around the world, using technology to rule out biases, and seeking external help to evaluate the examination and selection criteria.
He said the FPSC should hire a consultant with excellent repute and relevant experience to evaluate its examination and selection criteria, identify the improvements needed, and recommend solutions to bring it on par with the best selection and recruiting agencies of the world.
President Alvi said the recruitment process should be made more efficient and transparent by incorporating the latest Information and Communications Technology (ICT) tools. The FPSC, being the top-examining body, should make efforts to improve the availability of quality human resources for the government by bringing improvements and updating the selection process at par with world standards.
He said the processes for making high-level selection and recruitment required to be improved continuously by using sophisticated examination and interviewing techniques to ensure that the candidates match the required criteria.
He also expressed concern over the non-fulfillment of posts reserved in quota for minorities, women quota in rural Sindh, and quota for Balochistan. Such posts should be filled on priority without compromising on standards, the integrity of selection process, and the quality of candidates, he added.
The FPSC chairman presented the Annual Report 2021 of the Commission and informed the president that last year, it conducted national-level exams smoothly despite the COVID-19 pandemic and observed the relevant SOPs (standard operating procedures).
He highlighted that under General Recruitment, the FPSC received 509,955 applications during 2021, and recommended 2161 candidates for appointment against different posts.
He said in 2021, the FPSC received 39,650 applications for the CSS (Central Superior Services) Competitive Examination 2021, in which 17,240 candidates appeared in the written exam and 365 of them qualified for interviews. The Commission, he added, also conducted the first-ever Multiple-Choice Questions Based Preliminary Test (MPT) for the CSS candidates, in which 61,725 applications were received.
Ethiopian envoy lauds Pakistan for timely rolling out ‘Engage Africa Policy’
ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP): Ambassador of Ethiopia to Pakistan Jemal Beker Abdula on Wednesday appreciated the Government of Pakistan for timely rolling out its “Engage Africa Policy’ to explore areas of mutual economic interest within the African Continent.
“It is my firm belief that the current century belongs to Africa, which is emerging as a major destination for all the big investors around the world due to the rapid pace of development and progress there,” the ambassador said while speaking here at the Islamabad Conclave 2022.
At #IslamabadConclave2022, I highlighted business, trade& investment potential of Africa esp🇪🇹 which is a gateway to Africa for the world esp 🇵🇰 which has timely launched 'Engage Africa Policy'. Whatever produced in 🇪🇹 can easily be sold to entire Africa locate urself in Ethiopia https://t.co/I8gXITpTHz
— Ambassador Jemal Beker (@JemalBeker1) December 7, 2022
He said, “Gone are the days when Africa was portrayed by the world as a gloomy and underdeveloped place, marred by civil wars and backwardness”, as the situation had changed there altogether.
Africa, he said, had undergone a lot of transformation shaping its destiny and emerging as a land of opportunities.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, there had been a remarkable improvement in the governance style of African countries and political stability had become a hallmark of the continent with more democratic accountability and transparency within the governments.
He said by 2050, a quarter of the world’s population would be in Africa which would shape the planet Earth’s future. “Africa’s unprecedented population growth will have an impact on geopolitics, global trade, workforce, and other dominant prospects,” he added.
Giving some recommendations for reaping the fruits of the “Engage Africa Policy”, he called for establishing the institutional linkages between Pakistan and the African countries to boost bilateral, regional, and multilateral cooperation for strengthening political, security, economic, social, and cultural ties.
“It is also imperative for the Pakistani government to strengthen its relations with Ethiopia which is a gateway to Africa and connect the former with the latter,” he remarked.
He said Ethiopia was playing a leading role in pan-Africa since the colonial period and still had a strong legacy in shaping the political, socio-economic, and regional integration while striving to achieve the Agenda 2063 of the Africa Union.
Ethiopia, he said, was the founding member of the League of Nations, United Nations, Organisation of African Unity (OAU), and African intercontinental free trade agreement, and promoting the free movement of people, goods, and services across the continent. His country also owned the largest Pan-Africa Airlines with the name of Ethiopian Airlines, he added.
The ambassador said Ethiopia attached great importance to advancing the bilateral relationship with Pakistan, and the “opening of our mission in Islamabad reflects our commitment in this regard”.
Both Ethiopia and Pakistan, he added, shared similarities in many ways as both were heirs of ancient civilizations, influential diaspora, and share social, cultural, and political values. Ethiopia also had a federal system like that of Pakistan which held elections at regular intervals.
“Currently, the bilateral trade between the two countries is minimal and amounts to 78 million US dollars, however, my target is to take it to 200 million US dollars by the end of 2023,” he vowed.
Ethiopia, the ambassador said, had been offering multiple incentives to the investors who would be exporting the products to other destinations after ensuring their manufacturing in the country.
Finance minister briefs President on overall economic situation
ISLAMABAD, Dec 07 (APP): Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Wednesday briefed President Dr Arif Alvi on the overall economic situation of the country.
During a call on, the minister also highlighted the steps taken by the government to provide relief to the most vulnerable segments of society, President Secretariat Press Wing said in a press release.
During the meeting, various matters concerning finance, economy and the rehabilitation of flood affectees were also discussed during the meeting.
President for enhancing bilateral trade with Oman
ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP):President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday said Pakistan and Oman needed to work closely to substantially enhance the volume of bilateral trade by further deepening the business and investment ties.
Talking to the outgoing Ambassador of Oman to Pakistan, Al-Sheikh Dr Mohammed Omar Ahmed Al-Marhoon, here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, he called for establishing close linkages and enhancing the interactions among the businessmen and investors of the two brotherly countries.
The president said Pakistan and Oman, which enjoyed a brotherly strategic partnership in many areas, were bound together by common history, cultural heritage, values, faith, traditions and proximity of geography.
The volume of mutual trade between the two countries stood at $653 million and should be further enhanced by making collective efforts, he added.
President Alvi said the possibility of starting a ferry service between Pakistan and Oman should be explored. The ferry service, he added, would facilitate the export of Pakistani fresh vegetables, fishery and other edible items to the entire Middle East through Oman, which would also help improve the trade and investment between the two countries.
During the meeting, the president highlighted the increasing trend of persecution of minorities, especially Muslims in India, the increase in violent incidents of Islamophobia, and atrocities committed by the Indian forces against the innocent Kashmiris in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK).
Dr Alvi urged the world community to take notice of the persecution of minorities and rising Islamophobia in India and to use its influence for the resolution of the Jammu & Kashmir dispute in accordance with the resolutions of United Nations Security Council and the aspirations of Kashmiri people.
He said Pakistan would appreciate the early ratification of two recently signed memoranda of understanding on Maritime Cooperation and Defence Cooperation in the year 2020.
He stated that the Pakistani diaspora in Oman, approximately 250,000, was serving both the countries in various fields and the resolution of labour issues of Pakistanis living in Oman would further cement relations between the two countries.
The president expressed the hope that the issue of recruitment of Baloch people from Gwadar and Makran, halted since 2015 due to the economic crunch in Oman, would be addressed at the appropriate level.