Tag: Sector

ISLAMABAD - Eminent health experts and lawmakers here on Tuesday stressed the creation of federal health division to retain national role in health sector after devolution of ministry of health to provinces. They were speaking here on Tuesday in a Legislative forum on 'Health and the 18th Constitutional Amendment' organized by PILDAT and Heartfile, two civil society organization. Speaking on the occasion Dr Nadeem Ehsan, MNA, Chairman National Assembly Standing Committee on Health

KARACHI - Pakistan's textile sector export in March 2011 exhibited robust growth, augmenting by 44 percent, while the food group posted a 56.4 percent increase compared to the same month in the last fiscal year. Sources stated that the country's export of textile and clothing, which are major export sectors and possess 50 percent share in total export, stood at $1,249 million in March, 2011 in contrast with $867.253 million during the same month in 2010. Besides, export of food,

ISLAMABAD - As the energy crisis in the country continues to worsen, the government finally decided on Sunday to revamp the oil and gas sector by sacking all managing directors of various companies operating under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources.
This, among a number of other decisions, was taken at a meeting between Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Senator Dr Asim Hussain, who was appointed Adviser to the Prime Minister on Petroleum earlier on Sunday night.

KARACHI - Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) and Pakistan Microfinance Network (PMN) have joined hands to launch an online platform that will allow microcredit lenders and other stakeholders to assess competitive situation in their specific markets.
A statement issued by PPAF on Sunday stated that in an agreement to this effect was signed between by PPAF CEO/MD Qazi Azmat Isa and PMN CEO Mohsin Ahmad. International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Mission Leader

KARACHI - Due to the mounting cost of doing business in the fisheries sector it seems that the Pakistani firms will not be able to meet standards determined by the European Union (EU). He pointed out that if standards are maintained, firms are compelled to lower buying rates of raw material in which case the ultimate sufferer will be the fisherman who is already suffering due to skyrocketing fuel prices.
As a direct result there would also be a sharp fall in exports. Elaborating

KARACHI - China Three Gorges Corp, the country's largest hydropower developer, is ready to invest $15 billion in Pakistan's troubled energy sector to add 10,000 megawatts to its grid in 10 years, a senior company official said on Thursday.
Pakistan faced a power shortfall that peaked at between 4,000 and 5,000MW during the 2010 summer, sparking street protests and adding to the government's problems. The power crisis has crippled industry, and frequent power outages last up to

KARACHI - With regards to the blue chip sectors at KSE, a major decline was witnessed in the oil and gas sector which showing a decline of 12.6 percent, while OGDC was a major contributor in declining of the sector, declined by 21 percent during the first quarter of 2011, while the market remained volatile and closed with a decline of 1.8 percent in quarterly terms amid net foreign selling and uncertainty on political front.
However, the food and chemicals sectors supported the

LAHORE - The Senior Advisor to Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Zulfiqar Ali Khan Khosa has said that business organisations, associated with agriculture sector, should extend practical cooperation in order to play an effective role for increasing agriculture production and achieving self-sufficiency. He said that prices of fertiliser, seed and agri-equipment have increased due to imposition of sales tax on agriculture products, which will dampen agriculture production. The Punjab

ISLAMABAD - With the objective of resolving the load-shedding issue, the government decided on Friday to completely revamp the power sector with in order to get rid of load-shedding and address other issues of sustainability in the power sector. The meeting was chaired by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani. Both took serious notice of the continued load-shedding of power and gas in the country and ordered that no bureaucratic delays and bottlenecks be

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Saturday reconstituted the Privatisation Commission (PC) Board with majority of new members inducted from the private sector. According to an official announcement, the PC Board has been reconstituted with Minister for Privatisation Syed Naveed Qamar as chairman while Iftikhar ul Haq, Laeeq Ahmed, Mahmood Nawaz Shah, Tanvir Ahmad Sheikh, Nawabzada Saifullah Magsi, Farid Malik, Shahab Anwar Khawaja and Secretary Privatisation Commission

ISLAMABAD - Gas supply to fertilisers and Independent Power Producers (IPPs) will resume shortly.
Secretary Petroleum and Natural Resources Imtiaz Kazi said that the country was facing a daily gas shortfall of 900 million mmcfd against a total production of 4.20 billion mmcfd. He said that security problems were a hindrance to get 40 million mmcfd of gas production from reservoirs in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
He added, as per contract dated 1983, that gas to the

LAHORE - The US has been very clear on the need to support Pakistan's energy development at the Nuclear Suppliers Group forum, Robert O Blake, Jr, the assistant US secretary on Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, said late on Friday. He was speaking at a press conference in Beijing after the conclusion of discussions with counterparts from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Asked about US concerns over the China-Pakistan nuclear agreement, Blake said the US expected

LAHORE - Gender Mainstreaming Units of the Education, Home, and Services and General Administration (S&GAD) departments conducted a training workshop on "Women's Participation in Public Sector Employment and Challenges" on Monday. A large number of female employees of these departments participated and expressed their views on gender equality issues in the country.
The speakers said male-dominated family systems, culture and norms of the society were becoming an obstacle in

KARACHI - Indusmen Corporation Chief Exective Officer (CEO) Syed Afzal-ur-Rahman, who is also a former vice chairman of the All Pakistan Contractors Association (APCA), highlights the neglect of the Rs 500 billion construction industry despite its vital contribution to economic growth.
In an interview with Pakistan Today, he asserted that the sector was perennially overlooked and desperately seeks to build capacity to allow it to compete at international level. Key to this, it

KARACHI - The Tajikistan government will cooperate with Pakistan for the establishment of power plants so that the persistent power shortage in the country can be overcome, said Tajikistan President Emomali Rehmonov on Wednesday. He said this while talking to Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah at a local hotel where Rehmonov is staying. The president of Tajikistan assured the chief minister that his country can establish 600MW hydel power plant while another power plant of 220MW would

KARACHI - Pakistan Railways (PR) is tirelessly working to lure private sector investment to address its idle capacity and under utility, said Railways General Manager Ashfaque Khattak. Talking to APP on Thursday after a seminar organised in collaboration with Infrastructure Project Development Facility (IPDF), Khattak said that the primary purpose was to boost public-private partnership. He said that Railways was suffering from a financial deficit of Rs 26 billion, however, it could

FAISALABAD - Industrial and textile sectors of the city, along with labour unions, held a massive protest rally to condemn the government's discrimination against Faisalabad that was facing a 5-day gas holiday according to the revised schedule issued by SNGPL authorities. Reportedly, the protest rally was held by the regional office of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), Anjuman Tajiran City Faisalabad, members of Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) and a