DOHA, MAR 26: Qatar on Thursday welcomed Saudi Arabia‘s initiative to end nearly six years of war in Yemen. “Qatar welcomes the peace initiative launched by Saudi Arabia to establish a cease-fire in Yemen and Saudi efforts to find a political solution that will end the suffering of the brotherly Yemeni people,” Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said on Twitter after speaking by phone with his Saudi counterpart Faisal bin Farhan.

The top Saudi diplomat on Monday suggested a UN-supervised cease-fire between Yemen’s Saudi-backed government and Houthi rebels, who are supported by Iran, the reopening of Sana’a International Airport and the start of negotiations.

Yemen has been ravaged by violence and instability since 2014, when Houthi rebels captured much of the country, including the capital Sana’a.

A Saudi-led coalition aimed at reinstating the Yemeni government worsened the situation, causing one of the world’s worst man-made humanitarian crises, with 30 million people accounting for 80% of the population needing humanitarian assistance and protection.

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 26: National Vocational and Technical Training Commission ensures maximum facilitation of Pakistani skilled workforce working abroad. In this context, NAVTTC has established online complaint handling mechanism available on its website i.e. www.navttc.gov.pk to resolve the issues of Pakistani workforce expeditiously and swiftly.  Any Pakistani working abroad faced with difficulty in verification of certificate of any kind he may submit certificate and particulars through online portal. After due consideration NAVTTC will resolve the issue online without any cost.  

NAVTTC is perusing the policy of extending maximum support to Pakistani skilled workforce working abroad. The instant initiative is of NAVTTC’s effort to resolve the problems faced by workforce employed abroad.  A number of countries where Pakistani skilled workforce goes for employment have recently introduced changes in their registration regimes of foreign skilled workforce. In these countries the Pakistani workforce is increasingly facing the issues of verification of their skills and certification. To resolve such issues NAVTTC has introduced this online complaint readdressal system to reduce the problems faced by Pakistanis working abroad.

NAVTTC is also working on a plan to establish Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Centers in different countries where Pakistanis seek employment. In such centers Pakistanis who have the skills but lack certification can certify their skills by appearing for competency based trade testing.

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 26 – Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi, Chief of the Naval Staff visited PAF Air War College Institute, Faisal today. On his arrival he was received by Air Vice Marshal Zulfiqar Ahmed, President Air War College Institute. The Chief Guest congratulated the AWCI team for achieving the educational standards worthy of an institute of the highest caliber as the college was formally conferred the status of an Independent Degree Awarding Institute by the President of Pakistan, On 20 Jan, 2021. 

Addressing the Air War Course participants, CNS said that we must keep abreast of the emerging trends and make endeavors to deal with complex and dynamic security environment facing the world today. He added that jointness remained central to the modern concept of military operations as no force could achieve success in today’s warfare single handedly. Later on, the Naval Chief also met foreign officers undergoing course at the premier institution. 

PAF Air War College Institute is the prestigious institution of Pakistan Air Force, where mid level officers of Pakistan Armed Forces and friendly countries are prepared for assumption of key Command and Staff appointments. During the course the course participants are exposed to over a hundred subject matter experts including: Civil & Military Professionals, Diplomats, Scholars / Academicians, Lawyers, Industrialists, Scientists, Economists and Media Personnel. Exclusive Interaction with foreign faculty and strategists is also ensured to provide depth and academic rigor to the course.

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KARACHI – Chairman of National Business Group of FPCCI, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, and former provincial minister Mian Zahid on Friday welcomed Pakistan’s re-entry to the $6bn IMF programme.

The development will improve confidence of the developed world and international institutions but it would be at a cost, he said.

Mian Zahid said that the process of reforms is underway for decades but the focus is not national development but to please the lenders.

Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that the IMF directives have damaged the economy and masses before the pandemic and it is feared that with the new development masses will have to face a new round of inflation, unemployment and business closures.

He said that the economy and masses cannot withstand the harsh IMF conditions which include cutting developmental spending, reducing subsidies, increasing taxes and hiking power and gas tariff which will stoke poverty.

The so-called reforms will push many businesses into the loss which many would be closed while withdrawal of corporate tax exemptions to the tune of Rs140 billion will hit confidence and new investments, he observed.

He noted that the IMF has never pushed Pakistan to reduce inefficiency and corruption in important institutions but it has always targeted the poor.

The move to make SPB independent is said to be aimed at helping the economy and the poor but the fact remains that it will increase the burden on the masses and taxpayers.

He said that long-term gains should never be compromised for short-term benefits.

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Karachi – The President and the Bearers at the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI) have shown concerns over the per unit increase in electricity rates. The Federation is of the opinion that this all is being done on the behest and to meet the conditions of International Monetary Fund.

Mr. Nasser Hyatt Maggo, the President FPCCI, rejects the government’s move of raising power, besides periodically increasing rates of petroleum products, which will have consequential effect on cost of production in industrial sector besides the sympathetic effect on ease of doing business and exports, vis-a-vis the economy as imagined by the Prime Minister.

FPCCI strongly condemns the increase and stresses upon the need to review, since industrial sector is the key factor of overall energy demand and is intrinsically related to economy.

BEIJING, Mar 26th (DNA) The Launch Conference of Global Energy Interconnection (GEI) Development and Cooperation Platform was held here online and offline, which has attracted Pakistani scholars and students to participate and discuss.

According to Gwadar Pro, at the event, functions and benefiting aspects of GEI were narrated. Focusing on projects promotion, exchange and cooperation, resource sharing and conference services, the institution provides comprehensive services for government departments, enterprises, financial institutions and think tanks in global energy and power.

In an exclusive interview, Khalil Ahmad, Electrical Engineering master of North China Electric Power University (NCEPU) who attended the event, said, this platform may benefit Pakistani stakeholders, organizations and on-going cooperation under CPEC. Regarding energy demand in Pakistan, there are many potential areas where GEI can play its vital role.

He also listed several feasible areas of GEI utilization. Conventional furnace oil power plants and other potential sources of pollution, a huge adverse factor for mitigating climate change, can be optimized and reduced under global energy cooperation, especially under CPEC.

Regarding the positive role of GEI in climate change mitigation, another master majored in Electrical Engineering, Sajeel Bin Sohail said: “By considering the success and development of on-going projects, GEI is set to take initiative and work in collaboration under CPEC. I can imagine the green and low carbon environment of Pakistan which will make sufficient improvement in the overall global warming situation of the region.”

“In spite of many ongoing energy projects under the CPEC, there are still many slots to be filled in renewable energy production fields,” Khalil added, “By analyzing the current energy trend in Pakistan, the energy demand will be raised.

In such a situation, renewable energy is the optimum solution to meet the demand while keeping nature intact.”

Muhammad Farooq also agreed with this view. He believed that the diversity of GEI’s portfolio will bring CPEC projects to their next level smoothly.

Many initiatives in the mission statement of GEI will make CPEC projects much greener and closer to nature while meeting the energy demands.

Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO) is a non-governmental international organization which works towards promoting the establishment of a global energy interconnection system (GEI) to meet the global demand for electricity in a clean and green way, as well as to implement the United Nations Sustainable Energy for All initiative.

At COP24, GEIDCO promoted an action plan to scale up Global Energy Interconnection (GEI) in support of the goals of the Paris Agreement.