Investment in renewable energy around the world is entering a new phase that will require governments and the private sector to re-think the way they develop projects.

‘Build back better’ is often easier said than done after a disaster, but one example from the People’s Republic of China shows that it can be done well. 

Health and safety on the jobsite involves more than simply enforcing rules and regulations. A culture of prevention, as well as innovative digital solutions, are needed to keep workers alive and healthy.

State-owned enterprises face unique challenges when it comes to attracting foreign financing for infrastructure projects. But there are solutions.

Các doanh nghiệp nhà nước phải đối mặt với những thách thức riêng khi mời gọi tài chính nước ngoài cho các dự án cơ sở hạ tầng. Nhưng không phải không có giải pháp.

灾后“重建得更好”通常说起来容易，做起来难，但中华人民共和国的例子表明，这是可以实现的。

A well-structured law on private-public partnerships is a key opportunity to upgrade Viet Nam’s infrastructure.

Một bộ luật cấu trúc tốt về đầu tư theo hình thức quan hệ đối tác công-tư là cơ hội chính để nâng cấp cơ sở hạ tầng ở Việt Nam.

Global supply chains link the welfare of disaster-hit companies and their surrounding communities to a network of corporations that have an economic incentive to help them bounce back. 

With key financial reforms, Ho Chi Minh City has the potential to follow the model of Tokyo, Shanghai, Mumbai, and other cities which came to global financial prominence.

Với những cải cách tài chính quan trọng, TP Hồ Chí Minh có tiềm năng theo mô hình của Tokyo, Thượng Hải, Mumbai và các thành phố khác thành các trung tâm nổi trội về tài chính toàn cầu.

Local officials can now find information from all sectors, such as health, education, women’s empowerment, child protection, and human rights and law, to help them address child and teen marriage in their area.

Singapore’s carbon tax is designed to maximize green investments while minimizing negative effects on the overall economy.

There are three key strategies that can help Viet Nam achieve its ambitious development targets in the coming years.

Ba chiến lược mấu chốt để Việt Nam có thể đạt được các mục tiêu phát triển đầy tham vọng trong những năm tới.

By some estimates, the digital economy now accounts for trillions of dollars. But policymakers and companies still lack the data needed to fully understand it.

For many of Indonesia’s urban poor who work in the informal sector, social distancing is nearly impossible if they want to maintain their income. Two key policies can help.

The pandemic provides an opportunity for regional financial cooperation on reforms to make Asian banks more resilient to crises.

These charts illustrate how Asian and global stock markets reacted to the COVID-19 pandemic, with market reaction closely following local outbreaks and then moving in unison with global markets amid other shocks.

Bold action is required by policymakers and central bankers to keep the region’s economies afloat and contain the pandemic.

Countries can minimize the economic risk of epidemics by investing in the tools needed to predict disease emergence.

Investments in climate-resilient infrastructure should be the centerpiece of the billions of dollars in economic stimulus being used to rebuild Asia’s economies.

Like other sci-fi before it, it imagined the present year as a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Domestic air passenger numbers bounced back to over 100,000 last weekend for the first time in 10 weeks amid signs that the coronavirus epidemic is easing. Many Koreans chose the long weekend to travel to Jeju and other destinations in the south.According to the Korea Civil Aviation Association on W...

Eastar Jet is expected to lay off dozens of workers after a voluntary retirement program drew only around 60 applicants. The troubled budget carrier decided last month to lay off 22 percent of its 1,600 employees, and now its takeover by Jeju Air has been delayed, savings are even more urgent. Accor...

The consolidated central government balance, which is derived by subtracting total fiscal spending from earnings, has resulted in a staggering W45 trillion deficit in the first quarter (US$1=W1,226). The fiscal deficit grows even further to W55 trillion if losses from the National Pension Service an...

A luxurious estate in Boulder's Knollwood neighborhood is on the market for $7.5 million.

Surrounded by the White River National Forest, the 11,600-acre Seven Lakes Ranch located in the Meeker Valley is up for sale three years removed from extensive renovations.

A recent study outlined Colorado's most lightning-struck corridors, and it highlights much of the Denver metropolitan area as the most vulnerable part of Colorado to lightning.

Colorado Springs is the beachhead. But it's always been clear In-N-Out Burger planned to feed its fanatical following along the Front Range by building more than just the one restaurant coming to that city in 2020.

There's a home in Telluride that would make Flo from Progressive proud.

Imagine zipping down a 750-foot zipline over your private lake, then taking in the beautiful Colorado views from the comfort of the expansive front porch of your log home.

A roundup of stay-at-home orders in Colorado due to the coronavirus outbreak. Read the details of the orders in San Miguel County, Denver, Boulder, Piktin County and the Southern Ute Tribe.

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Rawalpindi : Conditional relaxation in lockdown announced by the Prime Minister Imran Khan was the dire need of the hour to halt the emerging poverty and deprivation of the people, said Haji Mohammad Gulzar Awan, Advisor to the President PTI North Punjab and Chairman of Global Peace Foundation...

The Sindh High Court on Friday issued notices to the federal and provincial law ministries on a petition of the Sindh Bar Council seeking direction to the federal and Sindh governments for the provision of an annual grant in aid to the lawyers’ top provincial regulatory body and at least...

Environmental monitoring reports describe the environmental issues or mitigation measures of a project. This document dated May 2020 is provided for the ADB project 43319-022 in the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

Lebanon’s mosques reopened their doors for Friday prayer as the country gradually scales back its coronavirus containment measures implemented almost two months ago.

A verbal altercation took place on a crowded flight from London returning Lebanese expatriates to Beirut, as passengers were angered by the lack of distancing measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus, local media reported Saturday.

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The governments of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan on Friday announced the partial easing of lockdown measures imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, even as the number of infections in the country registered a record daily increase.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced the lifting of the countrywide lockdown in phases from Saturday by reopening all construction-related industries and shopping centres for five days a week from Fajr (early morning) till 5pm and outpatient departments (OPDs) in hospitals.

The premier, who had announced the decision after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) attended by the chief ministers of the four provinces, had acknowledged that the lockdown was being eased "at a time when our curve is going up" but maintained that "it is not edging up as we were expecting.”

The trend continued on Friday, with the country recording 1,807 cases of Covid-19 from the three provinces of Punjab, Sindh and KP alone, and the national tally nearing 27,000. It is the highest daily increase in the number of infections since Pakistan confirmed its first case on February 26.

Also read: Pakistan's Covid-19 death toll doubles in last 10 days

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

A notification issued by the KP relief department said businesses associated with the construction industry will be exempt from closure subject to them following the standard operating procedures (SOPs) already issued for industrial units and sale points.

Businesses of steel and PVC pipes, electric appliances, manufacturers of steel and aluminium equipment, ceramic and paint industries, sanitary, paints, steel and aluminium works, and hardware stores will be allowed to open four days a week, not later than 4:00pm. They will remain closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

All factories which are not included in the negative lists of factories will also be allowed to resume operations.

According to the notification, all shops will be allowed to remain open for four days a week and not later than 4:00pm, subject to their implementation of the government's SOPs.

Meanwhile, Adviser to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister on information, Ajmal Wazir, told a press conference in Peshawar that educational institutions in the province will reopen as per the federal government's instructions and the province will not take an independent decision in this regard.

He added that discussions were being held on inter-district and intra-district transport with transporters and the decision will be shared with the public whenever it is taken.

Punjab

Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan said that the provincial government will submit a recommendation to the Centre for not lifting the lockdown in the province's major cities.

Speaking to reporters in Lahore, he said: "We have seen that there is a hype about coronavirus in some big cities. Therefore, we are submitting this recommendation to the federal government and if it is approved, then the lockdown and standard operating procedures will remain in big cities like Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan and Gujranwala."

Examine: The lockdown dilemma

He added that higher secondary board examinations in Punjab will be cancelled and students will be promoted based on last year's grades. Schools will reopen on July 15.

As per the federal government's decision, OPDs in the province will open from May 9, Chohan said.

He added that the SOPs for congregational and Taraweeh prayers in mosques as announced by President Arif Alvi will remain in place.

The first session of the Punjab Assembly since the pandemic began was also to be held today.

Sindh

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah told a press conference in Karachi that under "phase two" of the easing of the restrictions, businesses linked to construction industries will be allowed to open while observing the preventive guidelines. Selective OPDs will also be allowed to resume services.

Industries will no longer be required to submit an application to resume operations; however, they will have to submit an undertaking and forward the details of their employees to the government.

Shops will be allowed to open after sehri (dawn) and will be required to close at 5pm. They will remain closed on Saturdays and Sundays which will be "safe days with 100 per cent lockdown", the chief minister said.

The businesses permitted to resume from Monday include shops in rural areas and neighbourhood shops situated in residential localities, excluding large market places.

Shah said marriage halls, shopping malls, hotels and restaurants in the province will remain closed and there will be no congregations or sports events either.

"These guidelines will remain applicable until May 31. This is what the federal government has outlined and we are ready to comply with these directives," he said.

The chief minister appealed to citizens to stay at home as much as possible. "If you are allowed to leave your homes, according to the directives issued by the government, then make sure to follow standard operating procedures. Wear a mask," he said.

Referring to the increase in Covid-19 infections, he added: "I am seeing the rise in cases, but for national integrity and uniform policy we are going along."

In a statement released by the CM House later in the day, Shah denied media reports stating that the lockdown will end on Monday, saying: "We are entering the second phase of the lockdown with some extra restrictions, particularly at hotspots."

He maintained that air, train and public transport will continue to remain suspended.

Balochistan

In Balochistan, a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan approved the move to turn the lockdown imposed in the province into a 'smart lockdown', under which restrictions are enforced in virus hotspots only, according to Balochistan government spokesperson Liaquat Shahwani.

He announced that markets will be allowed to open from 3am till 5 in the evening.

Shopkeepers and traders will be bound to implement SOPs for precautionary measures while legal action will be taken against the violators, Shahwani said in a tweet.

LAHORE: Pakistan head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq says being confined to home due to the coronavirus-forced lockdown can become depressing and wants some cricket activities to resume soon even if the matches have to take place behind closed doors with proper safety barriers.

There are reports that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) was contemplating rescheduling and organising the three Test matches against Pakistan in August behind closed doors at Old Trafford, Manchester and Southampton.

Misbah said he would love to see some cricket activities resume at the international level, and has no problems in playing in empty stadiums.

“It is not an ideal situation for anyone because of this coronavirus pandemic and obviously the health and well being of everyone should be our top priority. But if matches can be held even in empty stadiums with the right safety barriers...I would have no problems,” Misbah was quoted as saying in a Press Trust of India report that appeared on The New Indian Express website on Friday.

The former Pakistan skipper said that the players have had nothing much to do except stay indoors for the last two months since the Pakistan Super League (PSL) was called off due to the global health crisis in March.

“Everyone is confined and I just think that if even if it can be made possible to bring some live cricket action to people sitting at home it would do them a lot of good,” Misbah said.

“It becomes depressing when you have nothing to do and hear about mostly Covid-19 news all the time. In this situation if sports can be resumed and if cricket can be started at least it will allow the people to watch cricket at home.”

Misbah, who took charge last year in September, said if the right safety barriers and precautions are put in place for players, match officials and other stake holders, cricket boards can move forward.

He, however, reminded that boards will have to follow their government instructions on the coronavirus.

German football league Bundesliga is set to resume on May 16 and Misbah said it was a positive development.

“But even they first got clearance from their government. Cricket boards also will have to do that,” he insisted.

The 45-year-old said the players were responsible for maintaining fitness standards during these testing times and he expects them to be in top condition whenever cricket resumes.

“I told them as cricket professionals it is their individual responsibility to take care of themselves and their fitness. Because they can be called on duty anytime,” he said.

Misbah said he had told the players fitness standards are essential nowadays because if they are fit they can also get back to form and match fitness quickly.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020

ISLAMABAD: As many as 1.6 billion of the world’s 2bn informal economy workers are affected by Covid-19 lockdown and containment measures, a new briefing paper issued by the International Labour Organi­sation (ILO) said.

Most are working in the hardest-hit sectors or in small units more vulnerable to shocks including workers in accommodation and food services, manufacturing, wholesale and retail, and the more than 500 million farmers producing for the urban market, the report says. Women are particularly affected in high-risk sectors, it adds.

The Covid-19 lockdown and containment measures threaten to increase relative poverty levels among the world’s informal economy workers by as much as 56 percentage points in low-income countries.

In high-income countries, relative poverty levels among informal workers is estimated to increase by 52 percentage points, while in upper middle-income countries the increase is estimated to be 21 percentage points.

In addition, with these workers needing to work to feed their families, Covid-19 containment measures in many countries cannot be implemented successfully. This is endangering governments’ efforts to protect the population and fight the pandemic. It may become a source of social tension in countries with large informal economies, the report says.

More than 75 per cent of total informal employment takes place in businesses of fewer than ten workers, including 45pc of independent workers without employees.

With most informal workers having no other means of support, they face an almost unsolvable dilemma: to die from hunger or from the virus, the briefing says. This has been exacerbated by disruptions in food supplies, which has particularly affected those in the informal economy.

For the world’s 67 million domestic workers, 75pc of whom are informal workers, unemployment has become as threatening as the virus itself. Many have not been able to work, whether at the request of their employers or in compliance with lockdowns. Those who do continue to go to work face a high risk of contagion, caring for families in private households. For the 11 million migrant domestic workers the situation is even worse.

The countries with the largest informal economies, where full lockdowns have been adopted, are suffering the most from the consequences of the pandemic. Informal economy workers significantly impacted by lockdown vary from 89pc in Latin America and the Arab states to 83pc in Africa, 73pc in Asia and the Pacific, and 64pc in Europe and Central Asia.

Countries need to follow a multi-track strategy that combines several lines of actions relating to both the health and economic impacts of the pandemic, the ILO said.

Among its recommendations, the report highlights the need for policies that reduce the exposure of informal workers to the virus; ensure that those infected have access to health care; provide income and food support to individuals and their families; and prevent damage to the economic fabric of countries.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Saturday that Saudi Arabian authorities recently detained and are holding incommunicado Prince Faisal bin Abdullah, who had previously been netted in an anti-corruption drive and released in late 2017.

The US-based rights group, citing a source with ties to the royal family, said Prince Faisal bin Abdullah, a son of late monarch King Abdullah, was detained by security forces on March 27 while self-isolating due to the coronavirus pandemic at a family compound northeast of the capital Riyadh.

Reuters could not immediately independently verify the detention. The Saudi government media office did not immediately respond to a detailed Reuters request for comment.

Earlier in March, authorities had detained King Salman’s brother, Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, and former crown prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who was replaced in a 2017 palace coup and placed under house arrest, sources had told Reuters.

Sources with royal connections said at the time that the move was a preemptive effort to ensure compliance within the ruling Al Saud family ahead of an eventual succession to the throne by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman upon the king’s death or abdication.

It was not clear if the reported detention of Prince Faisal was related to those in early March, which also saw Ahmed’s son Nayef and Mohammed bin Nayef’s brother Nawaf detained.

Saudi authorities have not commented on those detentions, which follow crackdowns on dissent in which clerics, intellectuals and rights activists have been arrested, and an anti-corruption drive launched in 2017 that netted scores of royals, ministers and businessmen.

Critics have said the campaigns were part of moves by Crown Prince Mohammed, the king’s son and the kingdom’s de facto ruler, to consolidate his grip on power.

“Now we have to add Prince Faisal to the hundreds detained in Saudi Arabia without a clear legal basis,” said Michael Page, deputy Middle East director at HRW.

The kingdom has regularly denied allegations of unfair detention.

Authorities said last year the government was winding down the anti-corruption campaign after 15 months, but would continue to go after graft.

HRW said Prince Faisal’s whereabouts or status are not known.

“The source said that Prince Faisal has not publicly criticised authorities since his December 2017 arrest and that family members are concerned about his health as he has a heart condition,” it added.

In late December 2017, a senior Saudi official said Prince Faisal and another royal, Prince Meshaal bin Abdullah, were released from Riyadh’s Ritz-Carlton hotel, where people nabbed in the anti-corruption drive were being held, after reaching an undisclosed financial settlement with the government.

Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 21 Displaying the humanitarian side of law, the Punjab and Haryana High Court in a rare judgment has set aside a lower court order, though it was neither illegal, nor erroneous. Justice Rajiv Narain Raina made it clear that the judgment granting yet another opportunity to farmers to plead their case for a higher compensation for acquired land was being passed to “avoid miscarriage of justice”. The order came on a petition filed by Vijay Kumar and another petitioner against Haryana and other respondents. Their evidence in support of plea to enhance compensation awarded by the Land Acquisition Collector was turned down on the ground […]

NEW DELHI: Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the real estate sector could jump over two-fold in the next one year with easing of FDI rules in the construction sector, realtors’ body NAREDCO said today. Real estate developers and consultants were of the view that this move would give fillip to cash-starved realty sector, which is reeling under a slowdown since last 2-3 years. It will help developers in raising funds to complete projects. Yesterday, the Cabinet relaxed FDI rules in construction sector by reducing minimum built-up area as well as capital requirement and easing the exit norms. “Reduction in minimum built-up area to 20,000 sq meters from 50,000 sq meters […]

Colorado Republican Party Chair Ken Buck, a U.S. representative from Windsor, pressured a local party official to submit incorrect election results to set the primary ballot for a state Senate seat, according to an audio recording of a conference call obtained by The Denver Post.

Colorado Republican Chairman Ken Buck is facing criticism from within his own party after revelations that he pressured another party official to submit incorrect election results — and then spent party money to defend the move. At least two party executives say they were surprised to learn Buck — who’s also a U.S. representative — […]

ADB today approved $1.5 billion in financing to support the Government of Indonesia’s efforts to alleviate the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic on public health, livelihoods, and the economy.

CHENNAI: City builder Ceebros has started pulling down the unfinished JW Marriott Hotel in the city, which it had bought from Hyderabad-based Viceroy Hotels for 480 crore last year. Viceroy group sold the property in MRC Nagar after completing the shell of the hotel because the hospitality sector in Chennai is going through a serious crisis with low occupancy in most five-star hotels. With more than half a dozen new star hotels being opened in the city in recent years, there is very high room inventory and hotels are struggling for business, say industry sources. Ceebros is pulling down the unfinished J W Marriott structure to redevelop it into a […]