Pakistan inks agreements with Kuwait in industrial cooperation, engineering amid investment push
Pakistan inks agreements with Kuwait in industrial cooperation, engineering amid investment push /node/2520176/pakistan
Pakistan inks agreements with Kuwait in industrial cooperation, engineering amid investment push
Pakistan’s Minister of Communications, Investment Board and Privatization Abdul Aleem Khan and Kuwait’s Minister of Commerce and Industry Omar Saud Al-Omar shake hands after signing agreements on industrial cooperation and engineering in Kuwait on May 30, 2024. (Government of Pakistan)
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Kuwait signed agreements on industrial cooperation and engineering on Thursday, Pakistan’s privatization ministry said, as both countries vowed to enhance bilateral economic ties for their mutual benefit.
The agreements were signed as Pakistan’s Minister of Communications, Investment Board and Privatization Abdul Aleem Khan led a delegation of officials to Kuwait for the fifth joint ministerial commission meeting between the two countries.
Pakistan has increasingly sought to attract foreign investment, particularly from Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait as it struggles with a macroeconomic crisis that has depleted its reserves and caused inflation to surge.
“Pakistan and Kuwait signed agreements in the fields of industrial cooperation and engineering,” a statement from the privatization ministry said.
“Federal Minister for Investment Abdul Aleem Khan and Kuwait’s Minister of Commerce and Industry Omar Saud Al-Omar signed the agreements.”
Khan said during the meeting that Pakistan would appoint a commercial consular in Kuwait to promote its business activities in the Gulf country. He added Pakistan would promote bilateral cooperation in pharmaceuticals, engineering and automotive sectors with Kuwait.
He said Pakistan aims to invest more in the food, textile and energy sectors with Kuwait. The Pakistani minister hoped for relaxation in visa restrictions from Kuwait.
“We will soon start visa on arrival for GCC countries,” Khan said. “We will provide Kuwait with a Pakistani workforce of veterinary staff, doctors, nurses and from other important sectors.”
During Kakar’s Nov. 2023 visit to Kuwait, various memoranda of understanding aimed at boosting cooperation in the fields of manpower, information technology, mineral exploration, food security, energy and defense were signed between the two countries.
His visit to the country came a few months after Pakistan established the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), a civil-military hybrid body designed to oversee foreign financing with a specific focus on the Gulf region in key economic sectors.
KARACHI: When the sun rises over the portside slums of Keamari in the Pakistani megacity of Karachi, 48-year-old mason Fazal Rahim steps out with his rusted tools into the searing heat.
By the time he returns home at night, drenched in sweat, there’s often no electricity to power even a single fan.
“It’s still unbearably hot and there’s no electricity either,” Rahim told Arab News.
“Our home turns into a hell, the children cry and heat rashes break out on their skin.”
As Pakistan’s largest city sweltered through a record-breaking heatwave in June, temperatures soared past 42 degrees Celsius (over 107°F), exposing a harsh urban reality: while the wealthy kept cool in air-conditioned homes, the poor suffered hours of unrelenting heat in overcrowded neighborhoods plunged into darkness by extended power outages.
Karachi’s two-tiered climate reality, shaped by class and access, now resembles what human rights advocates describe as “climate apartheid,” a term that captures how climate change disproportionately affects marginalized populations while the wealthy remain buffered.
Hospitals across the city, including the government-run Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center (JPMC), saw a spike in heat-related illnesses.
“We had nearly a thousand patients last year who came in with heatstroke,” said Dr. Irfan Siddiqui, head of JPMC’s emergency department, citing a rise in cases of dehydration, food poisoning and heat exhaustion this year.
POWER DIVIDE
More than 90 percent of Pakistan’s international trade flows through Karachi, a city of over 20 million people and the country’s economic engine. But despite its centrality to Pakistan’s economy, the city’s basic infrastructure, especially in its low-income neighborhoods, is chronically neglected.
A student walks past a display of locally manufactured evaporative air coolers for sale, outside a shop, during a hot summer day, in Karachi, Pakistan on May 27, 2025. (REUTERS/File)
Some residents, like Rahim in Bhutta Village, reported only two hours of electricity in a full day last month. In stark contrast, affluent areas such as Clifton and Defense Housing Authority (DHA) remained largely unaffected by power outages, with many homes powered by private solar panels or diesel generators.
K-Electric, the city’s sole power distributor, insists the disparity is not based on class.
“The load-shedding schedule is purely determined on a commercial basis,” said Bilal Memon, a spokesperson for the utility. “Areas with higher theft and lower bill recovery face longer outages.”
Pakistan’s National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) confirmed in its latest State of Industry Report (2023) that Karachi faces some of the highest transmission and distribution losses among major cities — a result of illegal connections, aging infrastructure, and weak governance. The report also noted that high-loss areas tend to face longer outages as a penalty mechanism.
For those already on the margins, like Tahira Perveen, a widowed asthma patient residing in the low-income Manzoor colony, the unpredictability of the electricity supply can be dangerous.
“As for electricity, no one knows when it will come,” she said. “During the heat, it [the outage] happens all night and all day.”
A CITY GETTING HOTTER
Karachi is among the world’s ten fastest-warming megacities, according to urban climate assessments by the United Nations Environment Program. The city has warmed at nearly double Pakistan’s national average, with temperatures rising by approximately 0.34°C per decade since 1960, according to Sardar Sarfaraz, the former director of the Pakistan Meteorological Department.
The causes are well documented: unchecked urbanization, the destruction of green spaces, and widespread use of concrete that traps heat. Karachi lost over 20 percent of its tree cover between 2008 and 2019, according to satellite data analyzed by the Global Forest Watch platform.
Man sits outside an iron hardware tools workshop, as he pauses during the power outage in hot weather in Karachi, Pakistan on June 17, 2025. (REUTERS/File)
“There are narrow lanes, very, very poorly ventilated houses, and it’s all a concrete jungle,” said Karachi-based climate expert Afia Salam.
“There is a segment, large segment of population, which is more impacted than the others. And then on top of it, if I put the gender lens on, the women are more impacted because culturally, they do not have access to the open spaces.”
Indeed, in the city’s informal settlements, women and children are often confined indoors, where poor ventilation and a lack of cooling options increase health risks during heatwaves.
CLIMATE INEQUALITY
Pakistan is ranked among the top ten countries most vulnerable to climate change, according to the Global Climate Risk Index by Germanwatch. Nearly 45 percent of its population lives below the poverty line, per the World Bank, and the country faces mounting challenges in coping with environmental shocks — from floods and droughts to rising temperatures.
In 2024, the International Monetary Fund approved $1.3 billion in climate-linked funding for Pakistan to support adaptation and resilience efforts. But activists say little climate funding is reaching those most in need.
“The policies being made don’t reflect the ground realities,” said Fatima Majeed, an activist working with coastal communities affected by rising sea levels and heat. “The people for whom these policies are intended are rarely consulted.”
Locals ride on a boat during a hot summer day in Karachi, Pakistan on May 29, 2024. (REUTERS/File)
Her concerns were echoed by Yasir Husain, founder of the Karachi-based Climate Action Center.
“We find that the government is least interested in this,” he said. “When there are programs, there is funding. [But] that money is not used to help the vulnerable populations.”
Sindh’s Environment and Climate Change Secretary, Agha Shahnawaz Khan, pointed to ongoing efforts: penalizing smoke-emitting vehicles, tree plantation drives, mangrove restoration and solarizing public buildings.
“We will continue to lag behind until the community supports the government and the government takes proper initiatives,” he said.
COOLING FOR A FEW
Twelve kilometers from Rahim’s baking slum, Dr. Navaira Ali Bangash lives in comfort, her home equipped with air conditioners and backup power systems.
“We are probably the most privileged people who have air-conditioning installed at our homes, offices and even in our cars,” she said. “But then there are those underprivileged people... who cannot even afford basic fans.”
Teenager covers an eye of his pet donkey with his palm as he pours water to cool it off during a hot day in Karachi, Pakistan on June 16, 2025. (REUTERS/File)
While climate change is often described as a global challenge, in Karachi it is deeply local — a force that exposes long-standing inequalities in housing, infrastructure, and health care.
For Rahim, the national climate discourse and international funding commitments matter little. His immediate concern is whether the ceiling fan in his single-room home will run tonight.
“Electricity [outages] have made our lives miserable,” he said, his voice tired and defeated in the oppressive heat.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s information technology (IT) ministry said on Saturday that global tech giant Microsoft was not retreating from the Pakistani market and was only moving to a partner-led, cloud-based delivery model in the South Asian country.
The statement followed media reports about the closure of Microsoft’s office and lay-off of a small number of employees in Pakistan, sparked by a LinkedIn post by a former head of Microsoft in the country.
The Pakistani IT ministry said the tech giant had shifted its licensing and commercial-contract management for Pakistan to its European hub in Ireland in recent years, while its day-to-day service delivery had been handled entirely by certified local partners.
“Against that backdrop, we understand Microsoft is now reviewing the future of its liaison office in Pakistan as part of a wider workforce-optimization program,” the IT ministry said in a statement.
“This would reflect a long-signalled strategy, consolidating direct headcount and moving toward a partner-led, cloud-based delivery model, rather than a retreat from the Pakistani market.”
Pakistan’s IT sector has witnessed a significant growth in recent years, reaching $3.4 million from July 2024 till May 2025, compared to $2.9 million during the same period the previous year, according to the Pakistani central bank.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government has been striving to further increase these exports to support the $350 billion economy, and the IT ministry sought to allay concerns about the clousure of the Microsoft office.
It said the global pivot from on-premise software (transactional deals) to Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) continues to reshape how technology firms structure their international operations, and Microsoft is no exception.
“Pakistan’s Ministry of IT & Telecom recognizes the strategic value of having leading global technology providers active in the country,” the ministry said.
“We will continue to engage Microsoft’s regional and global leadership to ensure that any structural changes strengthen, rather than diminish, Microsoft’s long term commitment to Pakistani customers, developers and channel partners.”
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Friday issued an alert regarding possible Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) in Pakistan’s northern areas, amid rising temperatures in the country.
Hot and humid weather prevailed over most parts of Pakistan and isolated falls of rain were recorded in Punjab, Azad Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Sindh in the last 24 hours.
Nokkundi in Balochistan recorded the highest temperature on Friday 47°C, followed by 46°C in Bunji in Gilgit-Baltistan, and 45 in Dalbandin, Sibbi and Jacobabad, according to the PMD.
“Due to a significant rise in temperatures and upcoming system in northern Pakistan, the risk of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) is very likely to increase in glaciated areas of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” it said.
“The persistent high temperatures may accelerate snow and glacier melt and subsequent weather events, potentially triggering GLOF and flash floods incidents, in vulnerable valleys and surrounding regions.”
The development comes as Pakistan braces for an extreme monsoon season that usually lasts till mid-September, with over 60 people killed in rains and floods in a little more than a week.
“All concerned are advised to remain alert and take necessary measures to avoid any untoward situation,” the PMD said in its alert.
Pakistan, home to over 240 million people, is consistently ranked among the countries most vulnerable to climate change.
In 2022, record-breaking monsoon rains and glacier melt caused catastrophic floods that affected 33 million people, killed more than 1,700 and caused over $30 billion in financial losses.
KARACHI: The death toll from a five-storey building collapse in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi rose to 16 on Saturday, officials said, after rescuers pulled more bodies from the rubble.
The Fotan Mansion residential building, where several families were said to be living, crumbled shortly around 10am on Friday in the impoverished Lyari neighbourhood of the city.
Rescue workers, along with residents of the area, continued their operation to find survivors and bodies through the night, once again laying bare the issue of unsafe housing in Karachi.
“So far, we have received 16 bodies at the medico-legal section, including those of 12- and 13-year-old children,” Dr Summayia Syed, the Karachi police surgeon, told Arab News.
Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said the rescue operation was still ongoing at the site of the collapse.
Many of the occupants were members of the low-income Hindu minority community and residents estimated that around 40 people were inside when the building collapsed.
According to the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA), Fotan Mansion had been declared unsafe three years ago.
“This building was declared dangerous by the SBCA in 2022 and had been served multiple notices over the years,” SBCA spokesperson Shakeel Dogar told Arab News. “Before the recent rains, public announcements were also made in the area, but unfortunately, no one was willing to vacate.”
Friday’s incident is the latest in a string of deadly building collapses in Karachi.
In February 2020, a five-storey building collapsed in Rizvia Society, killing at least 27 people. The following month, another residential structure came down in Gulbahar, claiming 16 lives. In June 2021, a three-storey building in Malir collapsed, killing four. And just last year, in August, a building collapse in Korangi led to at least three deaths.
Mayor Wahab said on Friday evening that rescue efforts remained their top priority, with accountability and investigation to follow.
“Once we’re done with the rescue aspect, we will focus on who was responsible for this negligence or omission,” he added.
KARACHI: Pakistan on Friday urged Saudi Arabia to invest in agricultural research and storage infrastructure as part of a broader push for sustainable food security, according to an official statement.
The call was made during a meeting between Federal Minister for National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain and Saudi Ambassador Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki in Islamabad, following the launch ceremony of the third phase of the Saudi Food Security Support Project in Pakistan.
“Rana Tanveer Hussain shared Pakistan’s long-term vision for achieving sustainable food security through investment in agricultural research, innovation and modernized farming systems,” said the statement circulated after the meeting.
“The Minister proposed deeper collaboration between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in key areas such as joint agricultural research, technological exchange and investment in food processing and storage infrastructure,” it added.
Hussain also highlighted Pakistan’s commitment to improving irrigation practices and promoting climate-adaptive agriculture to address the growing challenges posed by environmental degradation.
He invited Saudi investors to explore opportunities in agri-based projects, particularly in high-yield zones, and called for institutional cooperation between universities and research centers in both countries.
The minister also proposed joint work on desert agriculture, seed development and water efficiency, describing them as high-impact areas for regional collaboration.
Earlier, he distributed food baskets to families under the Saudi Food Security Support Project and interacted with recipients.
Now in its third phase, the Saudi-backed initiative is delivering essential food supplies to thousands of households across Pakistan, providing much-needed relief amid climate-related challenges.