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Fifteen-year-old in serious accident in Xylophagou

A 15-year-old was seriously injured while riding a moped overnight in the Famagusta district. According to the police, the accident happened around 9pm on Tuesday in Xylophagou, when a 35-year-old woman driving on Anastassi Manoli Street, under circumstances that are being investigated, ran over and injured the 15-year-old boy. The 15-year-old was initially taken by […]




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John Krasinski named People magazine’s ‘sexiest man alive’

By Danielle Broadway Actor and director John Krasinski was named People magazine’s “sexiest man alive” for 2024 on Wednesday, taking over the mantle from “Grey’s Anatomy” actor Patrick Dempsey. “Just immediate blackout, actually. Zero thoughts,” Krasinski told People in reaction to the news. The actor is perhaps best known for his sardonic nice guy role […]




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2024 Asian Regional Forum on Investment Management of Foreign Exchange Reserves - Roberta Casali

Opening remarks by Roberta Casali, ADB Vice-President for Finance and Risk Management, at the 2024 Asian Regional Forum on Investment Management of Foreign Exchange Reserves, 25 September 2024, Japan




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Asian Impact Webinar: Asian Development Outlook September 2024 Launch

Developing Asia’s outlook remains upbeat, with falling inflation and solid growth driven by strong domestic demand and exports. But risks remain, including geopolitical tensions and rising protectionism. How can the region remain resilient?




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8th Greater Mekong Subregion Summit, Plenary Session - Masatsugu Asakawa

Remarks by Masatsugu Asakawa, President, Asian Development Bank, at the 8th Greater Mekong Subregion Summit, Plenary Session, 7 November 2024




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Experts Pool: Senior Disaster and Climate Risk Financing Specialist

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Experts Pool: Senior Disaster and Climate Risk Financing Specialist in the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department. The deadline for submitting applications is on 11 January 2022.




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Senior Ombuds Programs Officer

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Ombuds Programs Officer in the Office of the Ombudsperson. The deadline for submitting applications is on 13-NOV-2024.




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Senior IT Officer (Change Lead)

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior IT Officer (Change Lead) in the Information Technology Department . The deadline for submitting applications is on 13-NOV-2024.




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Senior Compliance Review Officer

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Compliance Review Officer in the Office of the Compliance Review Panel. The deadline for submitting applications is on 21-NOV-2024.




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Senior Secretariat Assistant

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Secretariat Assistant in the Office of the Secretary. The deadline for submitting applications is on 18-NOV-2024.




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Associate IT Officer (Technology Operations Governance and Service Management)

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Associate IT Officer (Technology Operations Governance and Service Management) in the Information Technology Department . The deadline for submitting applications is on 19-NOV-2024.




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Senior Financial Control Assistant

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Financial Control Assistant in the Controller's Department. The deadline for submitting applications is on 21-NOV-2024.




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Senior/Principal Planning and Policy Specialist

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior/Principal Planning and Policy Specialist in the Strategy, Policy and Partnerships Department. The deadline for submitting applications is on 22-NOV-2024.




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Senior Investment Specialist

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Investment Specialist in the Private Sector Operations Department. The deadline for submitting applications is on 25-NOV-2024.




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Senior Administration and Communications Assistant

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Administration and Communications Assistant in the Strategy, Policy and Partnerships Department. The deadline for submitting applications is on 26-NOV-2024.




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Senior Country Economist

ADB has a vacancy for the position of Senior Country Economist in the Southeast Asia Department. The deadline for submitting applications is on 26-NOV-2024.




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Development Asia: Build Together, Benefit Together: Seoul’s Approach to Urban Development

Cities are engines of economic growth, generating over 80% of the global gross domestic product. As centers of innovation and technological development, they play a crucial role in creating jobs, driving commerce, and providing social services.




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Development Asia: How Cities Can Combat Extreme Heat Using Nature-Based Solutions

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Trump on Day 1: Begin deportation push, pardon Jan. 6 rioters and make his criminal cases vanish

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Denver Sen. Chris Hansen takes job in Durango but is mum on timing to resign his seat

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Denver police sergeant arrested for domestic violence assault

Denver police sergeant Stephanie Neblock was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence assault in Douglas County, the Denver Police Department said in a press release. 




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Sharing the Fruit of Forestry Products: Indigenous People and Their Incomes in the Forestry Sector in East Kalimantan, Indonesia

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Does Exporting Raise Productivity? Evidence from Korean Microdata

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Policies for Private Sector Development in Indonesia

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Number of Children and Their Education in Philippine Households

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Managing Capital Flows: The Case of the Republic of Korea

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Policy Environment and Regulatory Reforms for Private and Foreign Investment in Developing Countries: A Case of the Indian Power Sector

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What is Special about Enterprise Performance in North-East People's Republic of China?

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Using ICT in Capacity Building for Poverty Reduction in Asia: Lessons Learned from the Microfinance Training of Trainers Course

Research on ICT and capacity building for poverty reduction, focusing on lessons learned from a distant learning course in microfinance.



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Finance and Development: Financing Township and Village Enterprises in the People's Republic of China

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Road Development and Poverty Reduction: The Case of Lao PDR

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India asks states to consider setting up nuclear power plants, list power utilities

India’s federal power minister on Tuesday asked the states that are away from coal resources to consider setting up nuclear-based power plants, besides identifying and listing the power utilities to meet investments to support growing power demand.

The Indian government in its federal budget this year had proposed to partner with private players to develop small nuclear reactors to increase the amount of electricity from sources that do not produce carbon dioxide emissions.

States should consider setting up nuclear power plants at the sites where coal-based thermal power plants have completed their life, Manohar Lal, the country’s power minister, told states as per a government statement.

India’s stringent nuclear compensation laws have hampered talks with foreign power plant builders such as General Electric GE.N and Westinghouse.

The country, which currently has about 8 gigawatts of nuclear capacity, aims to increase it to 20 GW by 2032.

The minister also asked the states to identify and list their power utilities in the country’s stock exchange to meet increasing investment demand in the power sector as well as improve the transmission system to add more renewable capacity.

India has pledged to achieve a net zero carbon emission target by 2070 and has a target of 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030.




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Beijing pushes to join security efforts for citizens in Pakistan, sources say

Beijing is pushing Pakistan to allow its own security staff to provide protection to thousands of Chinese citizens working in Pakistan during talks, after a car bombing near Karachi’s airport that was seen as a major security breach, sources said.

Last month’s airport bombing that killed two Chinese engineers returning to work on a project after a holiday in Thailand was the latest in a string of attacks on Beijing’s interests in Pakistan.

The attacks have angered China, which has pushed Pakistan to begin formal negotiations for a joint security management system.

Reuters spoke to five Pakistani security and government sources with direct knowledge of the previously unreported negotiations and demands on condition of anonymity, as the talks are sensitive, and reviewed a written proposal sent by Beijing to Islamabad.

“They (Chinese) want to bring in their own security,” said one official, who sat in on a recent meeting, adding that Pakistan had not so far agreed to such a step.

According to the official, a written proposal sent to Islamabad by Beijing, and forwarded to Pakistani agencies for review, mentioned a clause allowing the dispatching of security agencies and military forces into each others’ territory to assist in counter-terrorism missions and conduct joint strikes.

The dispatching would be done after discussions, but Pakistan was averse to the proposal, one official said.

Neither Beijing nor Islamabad confirmed the talks officially.

Dawn.com has also reached out to the Foreign Office for a comment.

The source, and two other officials, said there was a consensus on setting up a joint security management system, and that Pakistan was amenable to Chinese officials sitting in on security meetings and co-ordination.

But there was no agreement on their participating in security arrangements on the ground.

The first official said Pakistan had asked China for help in improving its intelligence and surveillance capabilities instead of direct involvement.

A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry told Reuters it was not familiar with talks on a joint security scheme, but added, “China will continue to strengthen co-operation with Pakistan and make joint efforts to do its utmost to maintain the security of Chinese personnel, projects and institutions.”

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, declined to comment to Reuters while the interior and planning ministries did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

In a statement last week, Pakistan’s interior ministry said both sides agreed to develop a joint strategy to prevent similar incidents in the future.

‘Grave security breach’

The nature of the Karachi bombing has angered Beijing, which is now pushing harder to achieve a long-standing demand to control security arrangements for its citizens.

A pick-up truck rigged with nearly 100 kilogrammes of explosives waited unchecked for about 40 minutes near the outermost security cordon of the heavily guarded airport before its driver rammed it into a vehicle carrying Chinese engineers, officials said.

“It was a grave security breach,” admitted one of the officials investigating the bombing, which came just a week before Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s visit to Islamabad, the first such trip in a decade.

The official said investigators believe the attackers had “inside help” in securing details of the itinerary and route of the engineers, who had returned from a month off in Thailand.

They were to be escorted back to a power plant set up as part of plans for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Longtime Pakistan ally China has thousands of nationals working on projects grouped under the CPEC, a $65-billion investment in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative, which seeks to expand China’s global reach by road, rail and sea.

‘Chinese frustrations’

Publicly, China has mostly backed Pakistan’s arrangements, even as it calls for enhanced security.

Privately, Beijing has expressed frustration. At one recent meeting, the Chinese side provided evidence that Pakistan had failed to follow security protocols agreed on twice in recent months, three officials said. Such protocols usually feature high standards for the deployment and movement of Chinese officials.

However, earlier this month, China’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Jiang Zaidong, while speaking at an event, had expressed frustration over the attacks, stating it was “unacceptable” and urging Islamabad to strengthen security measures for Chinese nationals and crack down on anti-China elements.

In response, Foreign Office Spokes­person Mumtaz Zahra Baloch had called the statement “perplexing” and a stark departure from the longstanding diplomatic norms between the two nations.

Chinese nationals have been in the crosshairs of banned outfits who accuse Beijing and Pakistan of exploiting minerals in Balochistan, where China has a strategic port and mining interests.

Thousands of Pakistani security officers from the army, police and a dedicated force called the Special Protection Unit are posted to guard Chinese nationals.

Only China’s embassy in Islamabad and its consulates are allowed Chinese official security personnel, the Pakistani officials said.




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Constitutional bench to start hearing cases from Nov 14: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday announced that the recently established constitutional bench will start hearing cases on November 14 and 15.

Earlier, the SC constituted a three-judge committee to fix cases, issue court rosters, form benches, and decide weekly caseload for its recently established constitutional bench.

The committee held a meeting today which was chaired by Justice Aminud Din Khan (head of the constitutional bench) and attended by Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, who participated through a telephone call from Karachi.

The SC said in a press release, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, that the purpose of the meeting was to discuss matters for the formation of the constitutional bench.

During the meeting, the committee was briefed by the court’s registrar’s office regarding the pending constitutional cases, the statement said adding, “[The] committee resolved that priority shall be accorded to the oldest cases.”

On Nov 5, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP), in its maiden session, had picked Justice Amin as head of the constitutional bench by a seven-to-five majority.

Chaired by Chief Jus­tice of Pakistan (CJP) Jus­tice Yahya Afridi, the reconstituted JCP for­m­ed a seven-member con­stitutional bench, inc­­luding Justices Ami­nud Din Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muha­m­mad Ali Mazhar, Ayesha A. Malik, Hassan Azhar Rizvi, Musarrat Hilali and Naeem Akhtar Afghan.

Today’s press release mentioned that Justice Ayesha Malik will not be available on Nov 14 and 15 and “a bench comprising all available Judges shall be constituted to proceed with cases on these dates.”

The SC Registrar Muh­ammad Salim Khan released the court roster of a six-member constitutional bench which will begin hearing cases at 9:30am on Nov 14.

The bench will include Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.

The SC directed the Registrar to schedule cases for hearing before the bench.

The next meeting of the committee will be held on Nov 13 at 12:30pm after Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar arrives in Islamabad.




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PTI files curative review with SC in ‘bat’ symbol case

ISLAMABAD: As a last resort after losing the election symbol, PTI on Tuesday filed a curative petition with the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the Jan 13 and Oct 21 rulings that supported the Election Commission of Pakistan’s decision to deny the party its ‘bat’ symbol.

The curative petition is a final remedy that allows the SC to reconsider a dismissed review petition.

The 32-page petition, moved by Advocate Ajmal Ghaffar Toor, says the present petition has been necessitated by circumstances during the hearing and therefore based upon the principle of natural justice.

Besides the verdict is per incuriam and not a judgement at all, argued the petition, adding the petition was relying upon the Aug 22 Mubarak Ahmed Sani case in which the Supreme Court had altered its earlier decision.

Judgement was per incuriam, 32-page petition argues

The petition argues that the judgement was per incuriam, meaning it was made in ignorance of the terms of a statute or rule having the force of a statute. A decision made per incuriam can be considered a mistake and may not be binding.

The petition also relied on the Aug 22 Mubarak Ahmed Sani case, where the SC had altered its earlier decision, setting a precedent for revisiting previous judgements.

On Oct 21, the SC headed by former chief justice Qazi Faez Isa rejected PTI’s petition, seeking to revisit Jan 13 verdict in the bat symbol case.

The review petition was dismissed on the grounds that no illegality or material error in the judgement was pointed out by the petitioner.

During the case, the senior counsel Hamid Khan had pleaded before the apex court that he did not want to argue before a bench headed by a person who “harbours bias against PTI”.

It is the case of the petitioner that both judgements of Jan 13 and Oct 21 were void and non-existent in the eyes of law. The petition has raised questions of public importance with respect to fundamental rights and interpretation of the laws relating to the electoral rights of the people who were true sovereigns, by seeking to invite SC’s attention towards two of its own judgments, the curative review says.

On May 26, 2021, PTI had moved a curative review petition before the SC against Justice Isa who had won a case on a review petition. Then the curative review petition was moved against the majority order in favour of Justice Isa.

Later on July 21, 2023, ex-CJP Umar Ata Bandial rejected in chambers PTI’s curative review petition against Justice Isa whereas Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah in his additional note stated that a second review or a curative review or whatever given name, was not maintainable under Article 188 since this provision envisages only one-time exercise of this jurisdiction, whether made on a review petition or suo motu in respect of any of its judgments.

Now the fresh curative petition pleads that the SC judgment of Oct 21 was virtually an ex-parte order as no substantive hearing took place in view of the objections raised against former CJP Qazi Faez Isa and therefore it would serve the interest of justice that the judgement was set aside and the review petition was fixed for hearing again.

The curative review argued that both Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Musarrat Hilali, who were members of the bench which heard the review petition then, signed allegedly a blatantly biased orders, dictated by then CJP and therefore they have disqualified themselves from hearing the present petition.

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2024




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IMF seeks update on revenue system’s digital overhaul

• Holds introductory meeting with finance minister
• Govt pledges to end gas supply to captive power plants by Jan
• Lender’s team to hold joint session with power and petroleum divisions today

ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has sought a detailed, output-based update on Pakistan’s digitalisation plans for its revenue system, including the use of artificial intelligence to expand the tax base and increase collections.

On the energy side, the country has pledged to halt gas supply to captive power plants (CPPs) by January 2025, redirecting them to the national grid despite a strong pushback from influential rent-seeking industrialists. The IMF has firmly rejected any amendments to this programme benchmark.

The visiting IMF team, led by Pakistan’s mission chief Nathan Porter, held an introductory meeting on Tuesday with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. Minister of State for Revenue Ali Pervez Malik, State Bank Governor Jameel Ahmad and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Rashid Mehmood Langrial were also present.

The mission is also holding separate technical sessions with all the stakeholders, including the FBR, power and petroleum divisions and the energy sector regulatory authorities. In all these engagements, the mission appeared to have not expressed its mind so far, except from raising exploratory questions, participants told Dawn.

It is not yet clear if the dialogue would lead to policy-level discussions that had been a critical part of IMF programmes’ quarterly reviews.

The current $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF), however, has been designed in a manner that the IMF and Pakistan authorities should hold biannual review meetings for the disbursement of about $1bn instalments during each cycle.

The first formal review has to take place based on the end-December performance for Pakistan to qualify for disbursement for a second instalment of over $1bn by March 15, 2025.

Officials said the IMF mission has called for detailed explanations on the digitalisation of FBR’s processes for revenue collection, application of artificial intelligence for identifying and tracing tax evaders and their taxable incomes and businesses and involvement of specialised expert firms. They have also sought a complete update on the track-and-trace system.

In initial meetings, the FBR attributed recent revenue shortfalls — particularly in the first month of the second quarter — to the declining inflation.

The power sector’s performance appears to be within agreed limits concerning circular debt and current revenues.

Circular debt rose by about Rs70bn, below earlier estimates of Rs240-250bn. A circular debt management plan was approved only last week by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), led by the finance minister.

Sources said the government had been going back and forth over the disconnection of gas supply to inefficient captive power plants, belonging mostly to the textile sector, to utilise surplus capacity in the national power grid.

The industrialists have, however, now mustered support from gas companies. Some stakeholders are now pushing for the supply of imported LNG to CPPs at a weighted average cost of local and imported molecules on the premise that electricity connections were not available or were insufficient in certain areas.

The IMF mission is scheduled to have a joint session with the power and petroleum divisions on Wednesday (today) to discuss their interrelated issues, including circular debt, planned tariff adjustments, loss reduction programmes and recoveries.

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2024




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LHC seeks long-term policy to control smog

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has observed that a long-term policy is needed to control smog, directing the Punjab government to take actions beyond mere paperwork.

Hearing environment-related petitions on Tues­day, Justice Shahid Karim remarked that the federal government should also be roped in to address the issue that plagues Punjab.

Advocate General for Pu­n­jab (AGP) Khalid Ish­aq and provincial Secr­e­tary of Transport Depar­t­ment Ahmed Javed Qazi also appeared before the court.

The judge noted that the current approach of the government was insufficient, saying that if smog had appeared in Septem­ber this time, it might turn up in August next year.

Justice Karim remar­ked that a 10-year policy was needed to combat the menace of smog. He ack­now­ledged that the sitting government performed better than its predecessors but there was still more work to be done.

He also hailed the performance of Environment Protection Department Director General Imran Hamid Sheikh, urging other departments to follow suit. He noted that the transport sector caused 70 to 80pc of environmental pollution due to the use of smuggled low-grade fuel.

The judge insisted on considering the future of industries established within Lahore, citing the example of Beijing where all industries were moved outside the city. He said Beijing had proposed solutions but the Punjab government didn’t take them seriously.

The AGP replied that there were challenges in the execution of China’s suggestions on smog and the court would be apprised of the matter soon.

He further told the court that a policy to combat smog had been devised and a budget had also been allocated. From next year, he said, the citizens might be asked to avoid holding weddings from October to December.

However, the judge suggested that the government could impose restrictions on weddings, limiting them to one event instead of three, alongside a one-dish policy.

Justice Karim regretted that the government took actions only when the court became aware of environmental issues. He said major construction projects in Lahore might need to be halted to control the situation.

The judge remarked that even government-owned Speedo buses emit significant smoke, what to talk about the private transport. He expressed concerns, saying the current smog would persist until January.

“This is a wake-up call for the government. Planning for the next year must begin immediately,” Justice Karim observed, adding that the planning was the responsibility of the government and the court did not want to intervene.

The judge was of the view that solving the school buses issue alone could reduce pollution significantly.

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2024




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Don’t ‘normalise’ debt burden of the vulnerable: PM

• At COP29 leaders’ summit, Shehbaz Sharif reminds West of broken promises, calls for overhaul of global climate financing framework
• Links humanity’s survival with health of glaciers, says Pakistan ready to work with world for their protection
• Meets British, Danish, Turkish, Central Asian leaders among others on sidelines of climate summit

BAKU: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tues­day said that debt cannot become the “acceptable new normal” in climate financing, as he addressed the challenges faced by developing countries within the global climate finance framework.

“We stand at a crucial threshold where global climate finance framework must be redefined to effectively meet the needs of vulnerable nations,” he told a Climate Finance Round Table Conference organised by Pakistan on the sidelines of the two-day World Leaders Climate Action Summit.

He explained that finan­c­ing in the form of loans increases the debt of developing nations and pushes them towards “mounting debt traps” which he ref­erred to as “death traps”.

“Debt cannot become the acceptable new normal in climate financing which is why we must resume focus on non-debt financing solutions enabling countries to fund climate initiatives,” the PM said.

“Despite years of promises and commitments, the gaps are growing, leading to aggregate barriers in achieving objectives of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).”

Pakistan is ranked among the top 10 most climate-vulnerable countr­ies, according to the Glo­bal Climate Risk Index 2021. It has faced increasingly frequent and severe weather events, such as unprecedented floods, int­ense monsoon rains, devastating heat waves, rapid glacial melting and glacial lake outburst floods.

Calling climate financing an “urgent need of the hour”, PM Shehbaz said that developing countries need to deliver Nationally Determined Contribu­ti­ons (NDCs) and “need an estimated $6.8 trillion by 2030 to implement less than half of their current NDCs”.

He further urged donor countries to “fulfil their commitment”, which is 4.7 per cent of their gross nat­io­nal product and capitalise on existing climate funds.

The PM said that Pakis­tan can relate to the “agony and pain of other vulnerable countries”, highlighting how the country faced two devastating floods.

While emphasising tra­n­sparency and coordination in financial commitments made to developing countries, he stated that Pakistan alongside other developing countries, calls for stronger more equitable climate finance mechanisms under the UNFCCC.

He reiterated the pertinent need for reform of international financial architecture saying that “now is the time to build up on the momentum for international financial reforms” so that no nation is left behind in the global response to climate change.

Call to protect glaciers

In remarks delivered later at an event on glaciers, the PM linked the survival of mankind with the health of glaciers, adding that Pakistan, as one of the most affected country, was ready to work with the international community to protect these valuable natural resources.

Addressing Glaciers 2025; Actions for Glaciers, hosted by Tajik President Emamoli Rahmon, the prime minister called upon all the countries to unite in the efforts of protecting glaciers from pollution and snow melt by taking concrete and decisive actions to secure the future of glaciers as well as protect the mankind.

He said Pakistan was home to 7,000 glaciers which provided an approximately 60 to 70 per cent water for the Indus River flow, supporting 90pc of agriculture and serving its 200 million people.

However, the glaciers that provide water for this river have been shrinking over a period of time and at an alarming time, which is estimated at about 23pc decrease since 1960, he added.

The prime minister said this retreat was driven by rising temperatures and the consequences of these changes were glaringly visible.

He shared that accelerated glacial melt had led to the formation of more than 3,000 glacial lakes in the northern areas of Pakistan which were posing great threat. Out of these, he said, about 33 lakes were estimated at the risk of outburst flooding, putting lives of over 7 million people in danger.

Meetings with world leaders

On the sidelines of COP29, PM Shehbaz interacted with UAE President Sheikh Moha­m­med bin Zayed Al Nahyan and discussed cooperation on climate change.

Mr Sharif also met with UK PM Sir Keir Starmer, where the two leaders discussed enhan­c­­i­ng bilateral ties.

He also met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine Erdogan, where they discussed environmental pollution as well as matters of mutual interest between the two friendly nations, the report added.

PM Shehbaz also met with the Czech PM Petr Fiala and Danish PM Mette Frederiksen and stressed the need to enhance bilateral cooperation as well as build global consensus on the key climate change priorities.

In his interactions with Nepal’s President Ramchandra Paudel and Bangladesh’s Muhammad Yunus, PM Shehbaz discussed growing temperatures, the threat of rising sea levels, and forest conservation in South Asia.

Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and PM Shehbaz explored strengthening bilateral relations. In his meetings with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Tajikistan’s Rahmon, the leaders spoke about the conservation of glaciers and water resources in Central Asian countries and Pakistan.

With input from APP

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2024




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