Pakistan

Portuguese ambassador to Pakistan visits AKDN programmes in GB

Published

11 months ago

Farwa

Fredrico Silva, the Portuguese ambassador to Pakistan, recently visited various programmes of the Aga Khan Development Network in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Accompanied by Akhtar Iqbal, CEO of the Aga Khan Foundation, the ambassador saw 15 projects in Skardu, Hunza, and Gilgit, including water and sanitation, education, early childhood development, community forestry programmes, women entrepreneurship, agriculture and food security, natural resource management, infrastructure development, youth employability, land development, health and hygiene, disaster preparedness and mitigations, climate change action, tourism, and cultural preservation.

Ambassador Silva expressed his deep admiration for the comprehensive approach of AKDN towards protecting the environment and mitigating climate change, whether through generating clean energy, operating climate-friendly hospitals, and health centres, working to reduce the risk from climate-induced disasters, or promoting environmentally conscious tourism.

Fredrico Silva, the Portuguese ambassador to Pakistan, during his visit to GB. — Provided

Whilst speaking about the region’s uniqueness, the ambassador noted that Gilgit-Baltistan is home to the highest summits and is at the crossroads of civilisation with a rich cultural heritage.

The diverse communities reflect strong traditional values of unity and a deep sense of respect.

While appreciating the overall quality, approach, and impact of the development programmes, a unique part of the ambassador’s visit was his meeting with a local woman resident of Skardu, Farzana, who owns a solar-passive greenhouse supported by the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme.

The greenhouse produces green vegetables in the winter and seedlings earlier in the season in the greenhouse tunnel, which provides nutritional support for the local population and input for other women farmers.

Observing the impact of the initiative, Ambassador Silva commented: “Women entrepreneur are change makers and indeed with good training and greater perseverance, there can be significant improvement in the quality of lives of the local communities.”

The ambassador also interacted with students, women groups, and community-led organisations and admired the participatory approach of AKDN programmes where the communities take an active part in the development process and later become the owners of the programmes.

Business

Price of LPG “slashed” by Rs. 20 per kilogram

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

Sources claim that LPG rates have been lowered by Rs 20, making the cost per kilogram drop from Rs 280 to Rs 260.

It is noteworthy to remark that the costs of LPG were reduced by Rs 20 per kilogram earlier, resulting in a total reduction of Rs 40 per kilogram within a few weeks.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas for the month of May 2024 was lowered by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on April 30.

The LPG tariffs were lowered by Rs 11.88 to Rs 238.46 per kilogram in accordance with the OGRA’s notice. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the new rates will go into effect.

In April of last year, the price per kilogram of LPG was Rs 250.34. pricing reduction of Rs 140.18 has resulted in a new pricing for home LPG cylinders set for May 2024 of Rs 2813.85.

The OGRA reported a drop in liquefied petroleum gas pricing in April. The price of LPG is now Rs 250.34 per kg instead of Rs 256.78 due to a reduction of Rs 6.44 per kg.

The price of the household cylinder was fixed at Rs 2954.03 for the month of April, down from Rs 3030.12, a decrease of Rs 76.9.

Business

ADB delegation stops by FBR headquarters

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

Senior Director ADB Tariq Niazi oversaw the expedition, which also involved Sana Masood, Farzana Noshab, and Senior Public Sector Management Specialist Laisiasa Tora. The meeting included presentations from economists as well, according to an FBR press release.

The officers focused on structural and policy adjustments as they discussed the Domestic Resource Mobilization Program’s implementation at the meeting.

$300 million was given to the Pakistani government by ADB in December 2023 as a result of the hard work and dedication of FBR. Better laws, regulations, and institutional capability for the FBR were established by Sub-Program I.

With the $300 million in funding provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to the Government of Pakistan in December 2023, the delegation conveyed satisfaction with the program’s effective launch.

The FBR also underlined how crucial digitization is to recording the economy and boosting productivity in a sustainable way.

In order to promote the Government of Pakistan’s Digital Tax Administration Project, both parties decided to look into measures to improve their cooperation.

Latest News

Off-duty police in Islamabad are prohibited from donning uniforms.

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

The new directives, according to specifics, were sent via wireless by the federal capital police and state that no officer may wear a uniform when reporting for duty or leaving it.

According to the police official, uniforms will only be worn when on duty; otherwise, two policemen will accompany each other during duty hours and will always be required to carry guns.

A different development was the earlier release of an app by the Islamabad Police with the goal of improving crime prevention and public safety.

Launched on the orders of former Interior Minister Sarfraz Akbar Bugti, the recently released ICT-15 app aims to empower the people of the capital city by giving them the ability to actively engage in the battle against crime and protect their areas.

Residents of Islamabad can now easily download and utilize the ICT-15 app because it is easily accessible on the Google Play Store.

Citizens can report a variety of issues with this easy-to-use application, such as incidents, unlawful behavior, complaints against law enforcement, the presence of undocumented people, or any suspicious criminal activity.

The police promise quick reaction times as soon as information is reported using the app, so assistance will be provided as quickly as feasible.