Day: December 12, 2022

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that UK newspaper Daily Mail’s unconditional apology is a success of Pakistanis especially those poor children and mothers who were benefiting from the aid money that was targeted.

Addressing a news conference here in Islamabad on Monday, he said it was such a heartless campaign initiated by PTI that they didn’t bother to think about dignity of the country in their malice of defaming the Sharif family.

The Prime Minister said this malicious campaign also damaged Pakistan as mistrust was created regarding any funding to our country. He said Daily Mail’s article mentioned that money amounting to 600 million pounds by DFID to Punjab during 2008 to 2018 was laundered by Shehbaz Sharif and his children.

He said contrary to that, the money was used transparently, and after I sent legal notice to the paper, it lingered litigation for three years but finally this episode ended up in an unconditional apology. Shehbaz Sharif said PTI’s four years tenure was a period of political victimization.

He said PML-N led coalition has kept national interest above political interest and saved the country from default. The Prime Minister said we tried to give subsidy to poor people and Rs1800-billion Kissan Package is an example of that. He said the government is strenuously working to rehabilitate the flood affected people which is a big challenge. He rejected any threats of country’s default.

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Monday passed a resolution expressing deep grief and sorrow over the death of former Senator Begum Najma Hameed.

The resolution moved by Minister for Law Azam Nazeer Tarar, said Begum Najma Hameed was a seasoned and distinguished politician and her services will long be remembered. The resolution expressed deepest sympathies with the bereaved families. Later, newly elected Senator Syed Waqar Mehdi of PPP took the oath of office. The Chairman Senate administered him the oath.

At the outset, the house offered fateha for the departed soul of former Senator Begum Najma Hameed and those martyred in recent acts of terrorism in the country. The Senate on Monday passed the Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Bill 2022. It was moved by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar. The house has now been adjourned to meet again on Thursday at 03:00 pm.

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has said that mainstreaming the differently abled persons is inevitable for a strong and healthy society.

He expressed these views during a briefing here in Islamabad on Monday, by Chairman National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) Muhammad Tariq Malik, on issues pertaining to the registration of persons with disabilities.

The President said differently-abled persons should be facilitated for their registration with NADRA and issuance of identity cards, provision of healthcare facilities and assessment of their disability level. The President also called for an inclusive awareness campaign at the national and provincial levels to eliminate discrimination against persons with disabilities.

He stressed on facilitating differently abled persons in educational institutions and devising special curricula and techniques for their skill development. He appreciated NADRA for giving free-of-cost services to differently abled persons.

ISLAMABAD: Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $554 million financing package, including new and reallocated funds, to support recovery and reconstruction efforts in Pakistan following this year’s devastating floods, and to strengthen the country’s disaster and climate resilience.

According to ADB information from Manila on Monday, the financing, which includes a $475 million loan and a $3 million technical assistance grant from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and a $5 million grant from the Government of Japan, will support the restoration of irrigation, drainage, flood risk management, on-farm water management, and transport infrastructure in the flood-affected provinces of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh. ADB’s Emergency Flood Assistance Project will also incorporate climate and disaster resilience measures into the design of the infrastructure. ADB has repurposed an additional $71 million from existing loans to support the government’s flood-response efforts.

“This year’s floods, which affected 33 million people and brought enormous damage to infrastructure and agriculture, are a devastating reminder of Pakistan’s acute vulnerability to climate change,” said ADB Director General for Central and West Asia Yevgeniy Zhukov. “This project will help to rebuild critical infrastructure in affected areas and restore rural livelihoods.”

After unprecedent heatwaves in April to June 2022, Pakistan suffered a prolonged and intense monsoon that led to the country’s worst flooding in a century with glacial lakes bursting, rivers breaking their banks, flash flooding, and landslides. A post-disaster needs assessment conducted by the government and development partners, including ADB, estimated total damage and losses at more than $30 billion and recovery and reconstruction needs at $16.3 billion.

The loan will reconstruct about 400 kilometers (km) of roads; about 85 km of the N-5, the country’s busiest national highway; and about 30 bridges. It will also help to restore and upgrade irrigation and drainage structures including canals and on-farm water facilities to restore livelihoods, and strengthen flood risk management structures to mitigate future risks to agricultural land, communities, and assets.

“More people are expected to fall into poverty as a result of the floods and the food-insecure population is likely to double to more than 14 million people in the most affected districts,” said ADB Principal Transport Specialist Zheng Wu. “In close coordination with the government and other development partners, this project will provide crucial support to restore agriculture and other priority infrastructure to support socioeconomic recovery from floods.”

Funded through the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific, the $5 million grant will support staple crop cultivation in Balochistan and provide at least 60,000 farm households with higher quality, certified rice seeds for increased productivity over 54,000 hectares of land. The grant will also support women’s livelihoods in agriculture by providing farming equipment.

The $3 million technical assistance grant will support the implementation of the project and the preparation of an ensuing flood risk management investment.

In October, ADB approved a $1.5 billion loan to support the government’s provision of social protection, food security, and employment to mitigate the adverse impact of cumulative external shocks. The program partly contributes to the floods response given that a portion of the program beneficiaries are also flood victims.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members – 49 from the region.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has strongly condemned the unprovoked shelling and firing by the Afghan Border Forces (ABF) at Chaman, Balochistan resulting in martyrdom of several Pakistani citizens.

In a tweet on Monday, the Prime Minister said that the Afghan Interim government should ensure that such incidents are not repeated. According to the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), at least seven people lost their lives and 16 others suffered injuries on Sunday in Chaman when it came under ‘unprovoked and indiscriminate’ heavy gunfire and artillery shelling by Afghan border forces.