ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top economic body on Monday approved various proposals for the upcoming budget with regard to the inclusion of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and foreign investment projects in the development plan, Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office said.
The statement came after a meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) in Islamabad, which was presided over by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The forum reviewed development budget of fiscal year 2023-24 and was briefed on proposals for development plans in fiscal year 2024-25, starting July 1.
Pakistan’s coalition government is expected to lay out ambitious fiscal targets for the fiscal year 2024-2025 (July-June) budget on Wednesday that would help strengthen its case for a new bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
“The council was told that CPEC projects, international investment projects, and ongoing projects close to completion will be given priority in the upcoming development budget,” PM Sharif’s office said in a statement.
“Apart from this, sustainable development goals (SDGs) will be included in the development budget and backward areas will be prioritized in the development budget. The Council approved the said measures.”
Beijing is investing over $65 billion in energy and infrastructure projects in Pakistan as part of CPEC, a major segment of Beijing’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, which will connect China to the Arabian Sea and help Islamabad expand and modernize its economy through a network of roads, railways, pipelines and ports in Pakistan.
Along with talks with the IMF to support the dwindling $350 billion economy, Islamabad has also been making ambitious efforts to boost foreign direct investment in the country and has seen a flurry of high-level exchanges with Saudi Arabia, Japan, Azerbaijan, Qatar and other countries in recent months.
Speaking at the meeting, PM Sharif said his government would ensure best utilization of available resources for the economic revival, welfare of the masses and development of the country.
“The federation will ensure consultation with provinces and stakeholders so that decisions are made through collective wisdom and consensus for economic revival of the country,” he said.
The council was also given a detailed briefing on the 13th five-year development plan and informed that the scheme included development of all regions, especially backward areas, increase in exports, promotion of small and medium-scale industries, social security and poverty alleviation, increase in efficiency of workforce, progress in knowledge economy and a strategy to mitigate adverse effects of climate change.
Pakistan is in talks with the IMF for a loan estimated to be anything between $6 billion to $8 billion to avert a default for an economy that is growing at the slowest pace in the region.
While its fiscal and external deficits have been brought under control, it came at the expense of a sharp drop in growth and industrial activity as well as high inflation, which averaged close to 30 percent in the last financial year and 24.52 percent over the last 11 months.
The growth target for the upcoming year is expected to be higher at 3.6 percent compared to 2 percent this year and economic contraction last year.
Pakistan economic body approves proposals for CPEC, investment projects in development budget
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Pakistan economic body approves proposals for CPEC, investment projects in development budget
- Pakistan is expected to lay out ambitious fiscal targets for the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget on Wednesday
- The government aims to strengthen its case through the upcoming budget for a new bailout deal with the IMF
CASA-1000 power line project with Pakistan to be completed next year — Tajikistan minister
- $1.2 billion project aimed to allow export of Central Asian electricity to Afghanistan, Pakistan by 2020
- Project was launched in 2016 but has been stalled for years by turmoil and violence in Afghanistan
ISLAMABAD: Tajikistan’s Deputy Minister for Energy Jamshed Shoimzoda has said a $1.2 billion Western-backed project to build a power line between Central Asia and South Asia would be completed by December next year, state news agency APP reported on Monday.
The CASA-1000 project, launched in 2016, aims to allow Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, former Soviet republics with an extensive network of hydroelectric power plants, to sell excess energy to Pakistan and Afghanistan in the summer months. The project, initially meant to allow the export of electricity to Afghanistan and Pakistan by 2020, has been stalled for years by turmoil in Afghanistan.
Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan generate most of their energy from hydropower plants built on the rivers that flow into Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan limit water release during summer due to lower power demand, angering their neighbors who need water for irrigation. The five countries have failed to reach an agreement after decades of negotiations.
The new power line could smooth flows as power demand in Pakistan peaks during the summer months.
“Major energy project, CASA-1000 between Pakistan and Tajikistan, will be completed by December 2026, which will start providing 1000 MW of electricity to Pakistan,” Shoimzoda said in an interview to APP.
“This grand project will take time to be operational by January 2027, after which bilateral cooperation in the energy sector between the two countries will be further promoted and there will be a new beginning of clean and green energy projects in both countries.”
Tajikistan aims to completely switch to green energy and zero emission by 2027.
“The transmission capacity of the CASA-1000 energy project will be 1,300 megawatts, which will be an energy link between Tajikistan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan to provide clean energy not only to regional countries but also fill the need of Pakistan’s industrial sector,” Shoimzoda said.
“Massive infrastructural projects will be beneficial for all of its stakeholders by fulfilling energy needs and strengthening regional connectivity.”
Shoimzoda said Tajikistan has the capacity to export 10 billion kilowatt of energy annually, which would benefit all countries in the region, including Pakistan. Tajikistan also currently has the capacity to generate 500 billion KW of electricity, the highest among regional countries in hydel power.
The minister said Tajikistan was already providing electricity to other regional countries, including Afghanistan, and in the future would create a regional energy hub, to “usher in a new era of sustainable energy production and economic prosperity in the region.”
The United States was initially involved in financing the 1,200-km-long line as part of its New Silk Road initiative to integrate Afghanistan with Central Asia. Other project sponsors have included the World Bank, Islamic Development Bank, the UK Department for International Development, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Pakistan reports first-ever polio case in northern Gilgit-Baltistan, bringing 2025 tally to 11
- Pakistan concluded a nationwide polio vaccination campaign on June 1
- Pakistan, Afghanistan are only countries where polio remains endemic
KARACHI: Pakistan has detected the first-ever polio virus case in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, bringing this year’s tally to 11 cases, the polio eradication program said on Monday.
Polio is a paralyzing disease that has no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of 5 are essential to provide children high immunity against the disease.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the last two countries in the world where polio remains endemic. The country reported 74 polio cases in 2024.
“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed a new case of wild poliovirus in District Diamer, Gilgit-Baltistan,” the polio eradication program said in a statement.
“This is the first case of wild poliovirus reported from Gilgit-Baltistan and the eleventh confirmed case in Pakistan this year.”
Pakistan concluded a nationwide polio vaccination campaign on June 1. The drive had aimed to inoculate 45 million children under the age of five across 159 districts of the country.
In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 polio cases annually. By 2018, that number had dropped to just eight. In 2021, only one case was reported, and six cases were recorded in 2023.
Pakistan’s polio eradication program began in 1994, but efforts have been repeatedly undermined by misinformation and resistance from some religious hard-liners. These groups claim that immunization is a foreign plot to sterilize Muslim children or a cover for Western espionage.
Militant groups have also frequently attacked polio vaccination teams and the security personnel assigned to protect them.
Last week, a Pakistani police officer was killed when gunmen opened fire on a team of health workers conducting a door-to-door polio vaccination campaign in the southwestern Balochistan province.
New virtual assets regulator tops agenda as Pakistan crypto council meets today
- Pakistan set up Pakistan Crypto Council to formulate legal framework for cryptocurrency trading and lure international investment
- Government also planning to launch Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority to oversee blockchain-based financial infrastructure
KARACHI: Pakistan plans to establish a regulatory body to oversee digital assets, with the proposal set to be at the top of the agenda of a meeting today, Monday, of the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), the finance ministry said.
Pakistan set up the PCC in March to create a legal framework for cryptocurrency trading in a bid to lure international investment. In April, Pakistan introduced its first-ever policy framework, created by a special government group under the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter Terrorism Financing (CTF) authority, to set rules for how digital money like cryptocurrencies and the companies that deal in it should operate in Pakistan. The policy has been formulated to align with compliance and financial integrity guidelines of the global Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Last month, the government also approved setting up the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), a specialized regulatory body to oversee blockchain-based financial infrastructure.
“The Pakistan Crypto Council will convene a high-level meeting on Monday, 2nd June 2025, to be chaired by Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue,” the ministry said in a statement.
Aurangzeb is also the chairperson of the PCC.
“Key items on the agenda include the development of a robust regulatory framework to govern digital and virtual assets in Pakistan, in alignment with global standards and technological advancements,” the statement added.
“A focal point of discussion will be the groundwork for the establishment of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) — a proposed autonomous body to oversee the digital finance and crypto ecosystem in the country.”
Earlier this month, Pakistan announced the allocation of 2,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity in the first phase of a national initiative to power bitcoin mining and artificial intelligence data centers. The allocation is the first phase of a broader, multi-stage digital infrastructure roll-out.
Last week, Bilal Bin Saqib, the CEO of the Pakistan Crypto Council, unveiled the country’s first government-led strategic bitcoin reserve at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas.
The central bank said last week it had not declared virtual assets illegal but had in 2018 advised regulated entities to avoid dealing in virtual assets “due to the absence of any legal and regulatory framework.”
“This was done to protect its regulated entities and their customers from the risks emanating due to the absence of legal and regulatory framework for VAs in the country,” the central bank said in a statement.
“The SBP and Finance Division are currently engaged with the Pakistan Crypto Council established by the Federal Government for, among others, developing an appropriate legal and regulatory framework for VAs in Pakistan. We understand that the legal and regulatory framework would provide the requisite clarity and legal coverage about the VAs ensuring consumer and investor protection.”
Lit by the sun: How solar power is transforming lives along Pakistan’s southern coast
- Some 50,000 families in Sindh’s five coastal districts are set to receive solar kits under the World Bank-backed initiative
- Project aims to add 400 megawatts to the national grid, 270 megawatts of which will facilitate consumers in Karachi
SUJAWAL, Sindh: Holding a battery in one hand and an LED light in the other, Abdul Ghani waded through the salty waters of the Arabian Sea to reach his small wooden boat.
It was just past sunset, the sky dimming fast, but Ghani had no fear as he had light.
Ghani is one of hundreds of Pakistani coastal residents who have benefited from a green energy initiative under the World Bank-backed Sindh Solar Energy Project (SSEP), a multi-component program that aims to bring sustainable power to over 1.2 million of the southern province’s poorest and most energy-deprived people.
While torches don’t offer adequate visibility in the vast seascape, and boat generators scare fish away when powered on, the battery-powered LED lights from the home energy system have proven to be an unexpected boon for nighttime fishing for residents like Ghani.
“Earlier, I couldn’t catch any fish, but now when I go fishing using these lights, by the grace of God, I catch good fish,” the 45-year-old fisherman from Karo Chan, a coastal village in Sujawal district located in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province, told Arab News.
“This helps me support my children and manage our livelihood.”
The project targets people either without any electricity or facing power cuts, identified through Pakistan’s national poverty scorecard, a data-driven assessment tool used to identify and prioritize assistance for low-income households.
“Each family has a solar system with fans, three LED light bulbs, mobile charging facility, along with a charge controller and a battery package,” Mehfooz Ahmed Qazi, the project director, told Arab News.
“All these cost Rs6,000 ($21), ten percent of the actual price, to instill a sense of ownership in the users.”
Qazi said the project, launched in October 2019 and set to be completed in July 2025, had four components: a 400-megawatt solar power initiative for grid integration, rooftop solar systems for public sector buildings including 34 district headquarter hospitals, off-grid solar home systems for poor households and the establishment of solar equipment standardization laboratories at NED University in Karachi and Mehran University in Jamshoro.
The key objective of the project is to promote the potential of green energy across the province.
Out of the 400 megawatts planned for grid integration, 270 megawatts will be added to the system of K-Electric — serving over 3.4 million customers in Karachi and surrounding areas in Sindh and Balochistan — not only increasing the share of green power but also helping reduce electricity tariffs for residents of Karachi.
By the end of the project, 34 megawatts of rooftop solar installations will be set up on buildings across the province, while 200,000 solar home systems will be distributed, benefiting 1.2 million families.
Of these, 50,000 families in five coastal districts, including Sujawal, will receive solar home systems under the third component of the project that started in February this year.
For families like Ghani’s, the change has been immediate and life changing.
“I turn on three lights,” he explained. “When we turn on the lights, small fish come. Seeing the small fish, the big ones also come. Where I place my net, both big and small fish come into it.”
Ghani also uses the system at home once he returns from the sea.
His wife, Kulsoom, said life, was once defined by heat, insects and fear of the dark, had now changed.
“Previously, there used to be complete darkness,” she said. “The children would be distressed. We didn’t even have a fan. It used to be extremely hot, and we would suffer.”
Like many women in rural Sindh, Kulsoom’s day revolves around managing the household and caring for her children. Now, her nights are more peaceful.
“Now that we have solar [system], we are very happy, and the children sleep peacefully,” she said.
“COMPLETE DARKNESS“
In village Qaboolpur in the nearby Tando Muhammad Khan district, Naeema Gul, 47, had similar story.
Her husband, Gul Bahar, is deaf and mute. They have six children, one of whom has polio.
“We didn’t have electricity,” Gul said. “We used hand fans. It would get extremely hot, and there were always mosquitoes … Now, thank God, we have received solar energy. Earlier, our home used to be in complete darkness. Now we have light.”
Gul uses the fan provided with the solar system during peak summer heat, and the LED lights allow her to do embroidery on traditional ralli quilts, colorful patchwork textiles made by rural women in the province. She also uses the light to recite the Holy Qur’an at night.
Her disabled son, Gulzar, a fifth grader, has also resumed his studies.
“After receiving the solar panel, I can study and write with ease,” he said.
For women like Changi Rind, a widow with 10 children and dozens of grandchildren living in remote Jan Muhammad Jatt village of Sujawal, the biggest relief has been security.
“Previously, thieves used to come, but now, because of the light, they stay away,” she said. “At night, one person had to stay awake. There was no light in the wilderness, only darkness.”
Back in Karo Chan, as night fell, Ghani’s returned on his boat with a modest catch, unpacked the system and handed it over to Kulsoom.
With a fan whirring in the corner and her children sitting under LED lights, she reflected on how far the community had come:
“Where there was once darkness, solar [system] has brought light to our home and our lives as well.”
Pakistani ambassador meets Egypt’s grand mufti to discuss interfaith harmony, religious education
- Ambassador Aamer Shouket discusses matters relating to challenges facing Muslim world, says Pakistan embassy in Cairo
- Pakistan has tried to promote religious pluralism and faith-based tourism in recent years despite surging militancy in country
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Ambassador to Egypt Aamer Shouket recently met the country’s Grand Mufti Dr. Nazir Mohammed Ayyad to discuss the need for interfaith harmony, the threat posed by hate speech and religious education cooperation between the two countries, the Pakistani embassy in Cairo said.
Pakistan has made a conscious effort to promote religious pluralism and faith-based tourism in recent years, welcoming Buddhist monks as well as Hindu and Sikh devotees from India and other countries. However, the country continues to grapple with significant challenges, as religious minorities often complain of discrimination and marginalization in Pakistan.
Shouket met Dr. Ayyad in Cairo at Egypt’s Dar Al-Ifta, the country’s pioneer foundation that issues religious verdicts on various issues, the Pakistani embassy said on Sunday.
“The meeting discussed matters related to issues and challenges facing the Muslim world,” the statement said. “Hate speech was identified as a threat to peace and interfaith harmony.”
The Pakistani ambassador also expressed satisfaction over the existing cooperation between Islamabad and Cairo in religious education, the embassy said.
“The Ambassador admired the role of Al-Azhar scholars toward spreading the true spirit of Islam across the world,” it added.
Dr. Ayyad stated that Pakistan was “very well respected” in Egyptian society as a prominent Muslim country, the embassy said. The Egyptian grand mufti recalled his recent visit to Pakistan where he met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and expressed his best wishes and prayers for the people of Pakistan.
Pakistan and Egypt enjoy cordial ties that date back several decades. Egypt plans to establish a campus of its Al-Azhar University, one of the world’s oldest centers of Islamic education, in Pakistan.
