ISLAMABAD: The United States plans to spend $101 million to strengthen democracy in Pakistan, address the threat of militancy and prevent Islamabad’s reliance on China in fiscal year 2025, said a senior American official who presented a written budget request to the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday.
Budget requests, policy proposals and funding plans are frequently presented by relevant officials to various congressional committees in the US. These testimonies are part of the legislative process and are used to inform and persuade lawmakers about the importance of proposed expenditures and policy directions.
The overall budget proposal of $1.01 billion for South and Central Asia was presented by Donald Lu, the assistant secretary for the region, who said it represented a 1.9 percent decrease from fiscal year 2023.
“On Pakistan, we face ongoing challenges and opportunities,” he told the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “The President’s Budget requests a straight lining of our $101 million Pakistan budget.”
“That money would be used to strengthen democracy and civil society, to fight terrorism and violent extremism, and to support economic reforms and debt management to help stabilize Pakistan’s economy and prevent further overreliance on the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” he continued.
The American official, who was widely blamed by former prime minister Imran Khan’s party for contributing to his administration’s downfall, an allegation denied by Washington, said the US was struggling to compete with China in the region, which is seeking to secure military and commercial footholds in the Indian Ocean.
He also noted that the US administration had to “live in a world of constrained budgets.”
“Our most effective strategy to counter an assertive PRC is to demonstrate that we have something better to offer — better development opportunities, better commercial deals, and better solutions for their security challenges,” he added.
US allocates $101 million to counter Pakistan’s ‘overreliance’ on China, ‘strengthen democracy’
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US allocates $101 million to counter Pakistan’s ‘overreliance’ on China, ‘strengthen democracy’
- Donald Lu says US will also use the money to stabilize Pakistan’s economy, deal with militancy issue
- He maintains the US is living in a ‘world of constrained budgets’ while dealing with an ‘assertive’ China
COP29: Pakistani PM to pitch new fund in address at Climate Action Summit today
- Nearly 200 nations have gathered in Baku, Azerbaijan, for COP29 climate talks this week
- Main focus of talks is wealthier nations compensating poor countries for climate change damages
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will address the World Leaders’ Climate Action Summit at the COP29 conference in Baku today, Wednesday, where he is expected to discuss the risks posed to Pakistan by climate change and pitch a new fund to help developing countries pay for damages.
Nearly 200 nations have gathered in Baku, Azerbaijan, for UN climate talks this week. The main focus of the talks is climate finance, which involves wealthier nations compensating poor countries for damages from climate change’s weather extremes, helping them pay to transition their economies away from fossil fuels and helping them with adaptation.
Speaking on the sidelines of the World Leaders’ Climate Action Summit on Tuesday, Sharif said developing countries would need an estimated $6.8 trillion by 2030 to implement less than half of their current nationally determined contributions (NDCs), or national action plans for reducing emissions and adapting to climate impacts defined by the Paris Agreement.
“In his speech [Wednesday], the Prime Minister will shed light on the threats posed to Pakistan by climate change and highlight the country’s efforts to tackle environmental risks.,” Radio Pakistan reported.
“He will also speak about the responsibilities of developed countries and the establishment of a new fund in this regard.”
Sharif will also hold a meeting with the president of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, today and discuss bilateral cooperation, particularly in energy and regional connectivity.
Pakistan announces $50 million assistance for climate startups
- Project seeks to attract private investment in climate-tech ventures
- Initiative is backed by $25 million commitment from Green Climate Fund
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government has launched Climaventures, an initiative led by the National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) under which it will provide $50 million in assistance to climate-tech startups, Radio Pakistan reported on Wednesday.
Pakistan is ranked the 5th most vulnerable country to climate change, according to the Global Climate Risk Index. In 2022, devastating floods killed over 1,700 people and affected over 33 million, with economic losses exceeding $30 billion.
“Under this project, an investment of fifty million dollars will be made … aimed at providing technical guidance, grants and equity to climate startups," said Radio Pakistan, reporting on the Climaventures initiative.
“This project will increase private sector investment to deal with climate related challenges in Pakistan.”
In a video posted on X last week by NRSP, Georges Sander, a climate investment specialist, said Climaventures was exciting as it supported “local entrepreneurs […] develop local solutions for local climate problems”.
The $50 million project is designed to attract private investment in climate ventures, NRSP said.
With a core $25m funding commitment from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), Climaventures says it aims to address Pakistan’s funding gaps for sustainable solutions by offering technical guidance, grants and equity for climate-focused startups.
It is the first initiative of its kind in Pakistan and brings together key stakeholders, including government officials, international organizations like the World Bank and ADB, and climate entrepreneurs.
At UN climate talks, nations like Pakistan get chance to bear witness to climate change
- World’s biggest polluters and strongest economies, China and US, didn’t send their No. 1s, nor did India and Indonesia
- Main focus of this year’s talks is climate finance or wealthier nations compensating poor countries for damages from climate change effects
BAKU, Azerbaijan: When more than two dozen world leaders deliver remarks at the United Nations’ annual climate conference on Wednesday, many are likely to detail their nations’ firsthand experience with the catastrophic weather that has come with climate change.
That could include Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose nation has seen deadly flooding this year from monsoon rains that scientists say have become heavier with climate change. Just two years ago, more than 1,700 people died in widespread flooding. Pakistan has also suffered from dangerous heat, with thousands of people hospitalized with heatstroke this spring as temperatures soared to 47 degrees Celsius (117 Fahrenheit).
Also on the list of speakers Wednesday is Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Edward Davis. Like many other countries in the Global South, the Bahamas has piled up debt from warming-connected weather disasters it did little to cause, including Hurricanes Dorian in 2019 and Matthew in 2016. Leaders have been seeking help and money from the Global North and oil companies.
Greece’s prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is also on the list. Along with the rest of southern Europe, his nation this summer was hammered by successive heat waves after three years of below-average rainfall. In Greece, the misery included water shortages, dried-up lakes and the death of wild horses.
Leaders from Italy, Tuvalu, Russia, Morocco, Congo, and the secretary of state of the Holy See — the government of the Catholic Church — are among others scheduled to speak.
Plenty of big names and powerful countries are noticeably absent from COP29 this year. That includes the 13 largest carbon dioxide-polluting countries — a group responsible for more than than 70 percent of the heat-trapping gases emitted last year — were missing. The world’s biggest polluters and strongest economies — China and the United States — didn’t send their No. 1s. Neither did India and Indonesia.
But UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was there, and he announced an 81 percent emissions reduction target on 1990 levels by 2035, in line with the Paris Agreement goal to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times. That’s up from the 78 percent the UK had already pledged.
The main focus of this year’s talks is climate finance — wealthier nations compensating poor countries for damages from climate change’s weather extremes, helping them pay to transition their economies away from fossil fuels and helping them with adaptation.
Wednesday’s agenda also includes an update on the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, an idea modeled on predecessor treaty movements that sought to build international support for controls on nuclear weapons, plastic pollution and chemical weapons. Supporters say the treaty could help stop the expansion of climate-causing fossil fuel production, create a plan to fairly phase out oil, gas and coal and accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
The idea has been endorsed by countries and groups including Fiji, Colombia, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands, Indigenous nations in Peru, the World Health Organization and the European Parliament.
Religious affairs ministry signs Hajj flights agreement with PIA
- 179,210 Pakistani pilgrims to perform Hajj under government and private schemes next year
- Religious affairs minister has announced instalment plan for pilgrims to pay Hajj fees this year
ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Pakistan’s national carrier PIA have signed an agreement on Hajj flights, a spokesperson for the ministry said on Wednesday.
The Pakistani government approved the new Hajj policy earlier this month under which 179,210 Pakistanis would perform the pilgrimage next year under the government and private schemes.
“The national airline will provide travel facilities to 35,000 official pilgrims,” the spokesperson for the religious affairs ministry said in a statement.
“Agreements with Saudi Airlines and other local airlines will also be finalized soon,” the statement added, as PIA CEO Air Vice Marshal Aamir Hayat reiterated his commitment to provide the best facilities to Hajj pilgrims.
On Monday, Religious Affairs Minister Chaudhry Salik Hussain announced an instalment plan for pilgrims to pay Hajj fees.
The cost of next year’s Hajj under the government scheme is expected to range between Rs1,075,000 to Rs1,175,000, while an additional cost for the sacrifice of animals during the pilgrimage will be Rs55,000, according to the religious affairs minister.
The first installment of Hajj dues, amounting to Rs200,000, have to be deposited at the time of the application, while the second installment of Rs400,000 will be paid within ten days of the balloting and if your name is picked in the lucky draw.
The remaining amount can be paid by Feb. 10 next year.
Meet Major Sania Safdar, Pakistani peacekeeper recognized by UN for gender advocacy
- Safdar from Pakistan is first peacekeeper from UNFICYP to receive 2023 Certificate of Recognition for gender advocacy
- In Cyprus, Safdar, who has an engineering degree, served as Mission’s Force Signal Officer as well as gender focal person
RAWALPINDI: When Major Sania Safdar was posted with the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) last year, she never expected that her service would lead her to becoming the first peacekeeper from the mission to receive the 2023 Certificate of Recognition for gender advocacy.
Safdar, 36, was presented the certificate in August this year by the New York-based UN Department of Peace Operations for advocating gender equality as a member of the UNFICYP. She served from July 2023 to November 2024 as the mission’s Force Signal Officer and one of its military gender focal points.
“I am the first [Pakistani] peacekeeper from that mission who received this certificate of recognition for gender advocacy, and I am very happy and proud,” Safdar told Arab News in an interview this week.
She said her work involved promoting equal representation of women in all activities, organizing initiatives for them and ensuring their participation in planning, exercises, and operations throughout the mission. Since her deployment to the mission last year, she proactively took charge of several initiatives “by focusing on integrating the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda into military components of the Mission’s work,” the UN said.
Getting the certificate of recognition is not the soldier’s only memorable achievement as a member of the UNFICYP.
After she left the peacekeeping force in Cyprus, the chief of the mission wrote a letter of appreciation to Pakistan Army Chief Gen. Asim Munir, recognizing Safdar’s efforts as a staff officer.
“I am really happy and really proud to have two certificates with me when I finish my UN mission,” she said.
Safdar was also nominated for the 2023 UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award that “recognizes a military peacekeeper who has best integrated a gender perspective into peacekeeping activities.”
While the award went to Major Radhika Sen, an Indian peacekeeper deployed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Safdar said being nominated was achievement enough.
“Because of all my performance, I was nominated for this award,” she said.
“DREAM JOB”
Safdar hails from a small village in Pakistan’s Gujur Khan district and has a background in engineering.
“It was not very common in our village for the ladies to go outside and to live in the hostels for higher education,” Safdar said.
But her father, a retired teacher, encouraged her to join a post-graduate college in the city of Rawalpindi, from where she completed her Faculty of Science degree.
“When I came to know that now there is an opportunity for ladies from the engineering department to join the army, so it was my dream job,” Safdar said.
“Even after my BS [Bachelor of Science degree], I got the scholarship for my MS [Master of Science] education and it was a very good scholarship from abroad but I rejected that scholarship and I joined the military [in 2012].”
But life has not always been easy for Safdar, who is married to an army officer and has two sons under the age of ten. Indeed, while she described her service in Cyprus as a “wonderful experience,” living thousands of miles away from her young family came with its own set of challenges:
“In the middle of the mission, my elder son was facing some medical problem … and I was so much worried and so much concerned that my family responsibilities were being compromised.”
At one point, the major considered quitting the mission but her husband and family motivated her to continue serving.
It has all worked out for the best, as she said her family and especially her children were proud of her.
“When I visit their school they tell their class fellows, ‘Look, my mother is serving, my mother is in uniform,’ and sometimes they request me to, ‘Please come to our school and mama, please come in uniform’,” she said with a smile.
“This is, I think, the most proud moment for me that my kids, my parents, and my husband, they are proud of me.”
In the future, Safdar hopes other young women will learn from her example and follow their passions with “determination and faith.”
“If you really want to do something just go for it,” she said, “take the initiative and Allah Almighty will never, ever waste your efforts.”
