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World Children’s day to be celebrated tomorrow

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World Children's day to be celebrated tomorrow

ISLAMABAD, Nov 19 (APP):World Children’s Day will be marked on November 20 (Sunday) across the globe including Pakistan to promote international togetherness and awareness among children worldwide.

UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, promotes and coordinates this special day, which also works towards improving children’s welfare.

The day promotes the welfare of and understanding between children.

The theme for this year’s International Children’s Day is, “Inclusion, for every child”. This theme means that every child belonging to any society, community or nationality is entitled to equal rights. It also emphasizes on the eradication of discrimination among children of various civilizations.

Many schools and other educational institutions make a special effort to inform children of their rights according to the Declaration of the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Teachers stimulate their pupils to think about the differences between themselves and others and explain the idea of “rights”.

Pakistan sets up national pavilion to showcase products in Wenzhou import expo

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Pakistan sets up national pavilion to showcase products in Wenzhou import expo

BEIJING, Nov 19 (APP):Pakistan Consulate General, Shanghai has set up a national pavilion to showcase Pakistani traditional products at 4th Wenzhou International Import Expo opened in Wenzhou city in Zhejiang province.

The opening ceremony of the four-day event to be continued till November 20, was attended by province and city leadership, diplomats and businesses.

On the sidelines of the Expo, a trade and investment forum was also held. Consul General of Pakistan in Shanghai, Hussain Haider introduced Pakistan preferential investment policies and opportunities for Chinese investors in Pakistan.

Marriyum grieved over death of famous comedian Tariq Teddy

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ISLAMABAD, Nov 19 (APP): Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Saturday expressed deep grief and sorrow over the death of well-known comedian Tariq Teddy.

Tariq Teddy played brilliant roles in stage plays and Punjabi films, bringing smiles on the faces of audience with his humour and artistry, she said in a statement.

The minister said that Tariq Teddy had left this world leaving his fans sad. She said his absence would be felt for a long time in the field of drama and films.

She prayed to Allah Almighty to rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant courage to the bereaved family to bear this loss with fortitude.

May Allah grant the deceased a place in mercy and give patience to all the bereaved, Ameen.

Highlighting Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis, Pakistan calls for reviving Afghan economy

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UNITED NATIONS, Nov 19 (APP): Pakistan has called for steps to end the deepening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, saying that the country’s economy should be revived as a matter of priority.

“Our priority, first and foremost, is an end to the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan,” Ambassador Munir Akram told the United Nations Security Council “Arria-Fomula” meeting, while asserting that peace and stability in that neighbouring country was of “vital concern” to Pakistan.

Russia convened the meeting on “Preventing economic collapse and exploring prospects for recovery and development in Afghanistan” under the format of Arria formula, which is named after a former Venezuelan UN ambassador, Diego Arriva. It is a very informal consultation process which affords the 15-member Council the opportunity to hear persons in a confidential, informal setting.

In his remarks, the Pakistani envoy urged the international community to fulfill the UN Secretary-General’s appeal for $4.2 billion in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.

“We need to revive the Afghan economy — its banking system — and for that purpose the Afghan assets which are held abroad need to be injected back into the Afghan financial system,” Ambassador Akram said, suggesting a “pragmatic approach” in dealing with Afghanistan.

The United States froze the $7 billion of Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) assets held in the US after the Taliban regained power in August 2021. The US has not recognized the Taliban as Afghanistan’s government, but it has held talks with the Taliban over unfreezing the assets.

“We know all the legal arguments about holding these resources back and why and wherefore,” the Pakistani envoy said. “But you need a roadmap to see how to rebuild the Afghan economy,” he said, noting that the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was giving careful thought as to how to accomplish the task of injecting the Afghan assets held abroad into the country’s system without violating the norms and principles.

If the humanitarian crisis does not end, apart from the massive suffering of the 95% of the Afghan people, Ambassador Akram said there would be another flow of refugees that Pakistan or any of Afghanistan’s other neighbors would be able to accommodate. On its part, Pakistan has hosted over 3 million Afghan refugees for 40 plus years.

“So we need to deal with the humanitarian situation; we need to revive the Afghan economy,” he said, as he thanked those assisting Afghanistan in response to the Secretary-Genera’s humanitarian programme.

Apart from stability, peace and the economic revival, Ambassador Akram also said that Pakistan was concerned with terrorism emanating from Afghanistan. “We are still suffering attacks from across the border from the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which receives sponsorship from other sources,” he said, noting that Al Qaeda was a shadow of its past.

“The real threat comes from Da’esh and from TTP,” he said, adding that Pakistan’s efforts to deal with them have been difficult. “Even as a closest neighbour of Afghanistan, with shared culture and history, we still have difficulty in dealing with them because there are other factors at play and we know what they are.”

As for the rights of women and inclusivity, Pakistan totally subscribes to the aspirations and desires of the international community. “But”, he said, “one also has to see the reality of Afghan society, of what is Afghanistan.”

The Pakistani envoy then posed questions: “In twenty years when the foreign forces were there and democracy was sought to be fostered, how democratic were those elections? How many women and girls in Afghanistan were able to enjoy the rights that we saw on the television screens in Kabul, in Mazar-e-Sharif?

The rural areas of Afghanistan had not changed, he said, adding that women were still in the same plight that they’ve had for centuries. “Yes, we must promote their rights. We must defend their rights. We must stop the backward policies that the Taliban have implemented,” the ambassador said. “But also, let us not see it as black and white. It is much more nuanced, the situation and we have to work with the Afghan society and the OIC countries are working.”

What was need was persuasion, engagement and dialogue with the Taliban in an effort to change their policies because their ideological polity was rooted in culture, and he called for adopting a “realistic approach.”

“It must be an approach of engagement, rather than isolation and coercion, because we have seen that 20 years of coercion did not work,” Ambassador Akram said, adding that isolation would not work either.

“We need engagement and I hope that the international community will come around to the fact that engagement is what is necessary.”

Pakistan, Dominican Republic establish formal diplomatic relations

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UNITED NATIONS, Nov 18 (APP):Pakistan and the Dominican Republic, a Caribbean country, Friday signed a joint communique formally establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The signing ceremony was held at the Pakistan Mission to the United Nations in New York, according to a press release.

Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN Ambassador Munir Akram signed the communique on behalf of the Pakistani government while his Dominican Republic counterpart, Jose Blanco, signed on behalf of his government.

The two envoys expressed confidence that the move to establish diplomatic relations will open new avenues of cooperation between the two countries in various fields and areas of mutual interest, including political, economic, trade, culture and tourism cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, the press release said.

They also noted with satisfaction the existing cordial relations and close cooperation between the two countries at the UN and on other multilateral forums. Both sides resolved to further solidify these ties by diversifying the existing areas of collaboration.

The establishment of diplomatic relations will also facilitate the two countries in their joint efforts towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and UN’s agenda to promote global development and prosperity; including under the ambit of the Group of 77 (developing countries) and China.

Dominican Republic, a founding member of the UN, is the second largest and one of the most diverse countries in the Caribbean. It became independent in 1844.

High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui reviewing the Arabic/Islamic Calligraphy exhibition organized at Pakistan High Commission Dhaka on the sidelines of Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW).

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High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui reviewing the Arabic/Islamic Calligraphy exhibition organized at Pakistan High Commission Dhaka on the sidelines of Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW).
APP47-181122 DHAKA: November 18 – High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui reviewing the Arabic/Islamic Calligraphy exhibition organized at Pakistan High Commission Dhaka on the sidelines of Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW). APP/ABB
High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui reviewing the Arabic/Islamic Calligraphy exhibition organized at Pakistan High Commission Dhaka on the sidelines of Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW).
APP47-181122 DHAKA:

Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar presides over the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet

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Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar presides over the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet
ISLAMABAD: November 18 - Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar presides over the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet. APP
Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar presides over the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet
APP46-181122 ISLAMABAD:

High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui speaking at the Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW) at Pakistan High Commission

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High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui speaking at the Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW) at Pakistan High Commission
APP48-181122 DHAKA: November 18 – High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui speaking at the Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW) at Pakistan High Commission. APP/ABB
High Commissioner for Pakistan to Bangladesh Mr Imran Ahmed Siddiqui speaking at the Mehfil e Milad un Nabi (SAW) at Pakistan High Commission
APP48-181122 DHAKA:

WHO Country Head calls on Balochistan CM

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QUETTA, Nov 19 (APP):Country Head of World Health Organization in Pakistan Dr Palitha Gunarathna Mahipala called on Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo here on Saturday.

Chief Secretary Abdul Aziz Uqaili and Health Secretary Hafiz Tahir were also present on the occasion.

Dr Palitha said that the WHO acknowledged the services of the Balochistan government for providing assistance and health facilities to the flood victims in the affected areas of the province, adding that the efforts were commendable.

He said that the chief minister played an active role in the flood-affected areas and provided immediate relief to the victims.

The WHO would continue to provide full support to control epidemics in flood-affected areas and meet the health and nutritional needs of mothers and children, he said.

In the meeting, they agreed to increase the cooperation of the World Health Organization in the provision of health facilities in Balochistan.

Dr Palitha also assured of extending cooperation to control polio-measles and other childhood diseases under EPI on behalf of the WHO.

He said that more vaccination centres would be set up, CT Scan Ambulance and Motorcycles for Health Workers would be provided to the Health Department.

Bizenjo thanked the WHO for providing valuable support. He also praised for the services of the WHO Country Head for Balochistan.

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ms Marriyum Aurangzeb addressing a press conference

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Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ms Marriyum Aurangzeb addressing a press conference
APP45-181122 ISLAMABAD: November 18 – Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ms Marriyum Aurangzeb addressing a press conference. APP/ABB
Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ms Marriyum Aurangzeb addressing a press conference
APP45-181122 ISLAMABAD: