ISLAMABAD: Pakistani health authorities confirmed a fourth mpox case in the country on Sunday, identifying the patient as a resident of Peshawar who had been isolated by border health staff at the airport after showing symptoms of the disease.
Mpox, a viral disease causing flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions, has prompted global concern, with the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring it a public health emergency on August 14. A new strain of the virus, which first emerged in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has since spread to several countries, leading to increased monitoring and preventive measures worldwide.
In response to the health emergency, Pakistan has implemented stringent screening protocols at all airports and border entry points to prevent the spread of the disease. Pakistani officials say health authorities are maintaining high alert to detect and manage any potential new cases promptly.
“The 47-year-old citizen was isolated on August 29 by the Border Health Services based on symptoms,” said a statement circulated by the health ministry. “The affected person came from the Gulf countries.”
“After the recent emergency, the number of mpox cases in Pakistan has reached four,” it added.
The ministry also reported that a suspected mpox case in Karachi, identified the previous day, had tested negative.
Dr. Mukhtar Bhart, the Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Health, emphasized the government’s commitment to preventing the spread of mpox and protecting the public.
“Practical measures are ongoing to protect the public from epidemics,” he said. “We are committed to ensuring all possible measures.”
Dr. Bhart added that the Ministry of Health, alongside provincial health departments, was actively monitoring the situation and coordinating efforts to prevent any further spread of the virus.
“Our goal is to protect the public from potential outbreaks, and we are prepared to take all necessary actions to achieve this,” he added.
Pakistan reports fourth mpox case in Peshawar amid airport screening
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Pakistan reports fourth mpox case in Peshawar amid airport screening
- The 47-year-old citizen was isolated on August 29 by the border health staff based on symptoms
- Officials say a suspected mpox case in Karachi, identified the previous day, has tested negative
Shan Foods, Pakistan’s top spice mix maker, eyes Middle East expansion
- Co-chairperson of one of Pakistan’s largest producers of packaged spices speaks to Arab News in exclusive interview
- Says Middle East “key focus area” for company, claims business in the region has grown exponentially in 20 years
KARACHI: Shan Foods (Private) Limited, one of Pakistan’s largest producers of packaged spice mixes, says Saudi Arabia and the Middle East are a “key focus area” for expansion, a top official at the company said this week, adding that it had already captured 65 percent of the market in the United Arab Emirates.
Shan Foods has a presence in more than 75 countries currently. It was founded in 1981 by Sikander Sultan who along with his wife started making spice mixes at home. The spices became popular and formed a loyal fan-base both at home and with Pakistanis who had moved to Arab countries, Europe, US and Canada.
“So, it [Middle East] is one of our key focus areas, it’s a key focus market for us because there is a huge South Asian population that lives in Saudi Arabia and then the Arab consumers are also familiar with our food and the kind of food that we eat,” Sammer Sultan, the co-chairperson of Shan Foods, said in an interview to Arab News.
“They’re very exposed to it. So, it’s definitely one of the core areas of focus for us, and we want to grow our business there. UAE specifically is one of our biggest regions already in terms of our sales values.”
When asked about the size of Shan Foods in the Middle Eastern market, she replied:
“It would be difficult for me to give you a number like that, but we’ve had exponential growth. If I were to compare from 20 years ago, it’s probably 100x by now. So, what we were selling maybe 20 years ago, we’re selling 100 times that now. So it’s been phenomenal.”
PARTNERSHIP WITH SYMRISE
Shan Foods last year partnered with Symrise AG, a German manufacturer of food flavorings, to establish Symrise’s first-ever production facility in Pakistan, aiming to localize Shan’s supply chain and strengthen its position within the local and global food industries.
Since 2005, Symrise has seen double-digit growth year on year with its partners across the Middle East and Pakistan region.
Sultan said the joint venture would not only facilitate Shan Foods and Symrise but also benefit businesses and consumers within the larger framework.
“The whole objective of import substitution is that you are trying to bring in something that is locally available instead of trying to import it to the country,” she said, pointing out that many of Shan Foods’ raw materials were currently sourced from abroad.
“We are not fully local in the sense that a lot of our inputs are coming in from abroad and that’s the process that we are working collaboratively with Symrise to figure out, how do we localize all our supply to Pakistan,” Sultan added.
“That is something that ties in with Shaan’s sustainability goals as well because we also want to localize the top 10 raw materials that we’re using in our spices because, you see, logistics, wars, there’s so many factors that come into play when the global supply chain gets affected.”
Also, with rising inflation and cost pressures on businesses, localizing key raw materials decreased prices and benefited consumers, Sultan said.
“They get to pay a lower price,” she explained, “or at least every year the price doesn’t go up as much because we are localizing the raw materials and input.”
Pakistan condemns Israel’s use of communications devices to commit ‘terrorism’ in Lebanon
- On Wednesday, hand-held radios used by Hezbollah detonated across Lebanon’s south, with 20 people killed
- Wednesday’s blasts came a day after pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded simultaneously, killing 12
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday “strongly” condemned and called “reprehensible” the use of electronic devices by Israel to attack Lebanon amid spiraling tensions following mass assaults on Hezbollah communications devices this week.
On Wednesday, hand-held radios used by Hezbollah detonated across Lebanon’s south, with 20 killed, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. Wednesday’s blasts came just a day after pagers exploded simultaneously, killing least 12 and leaving nearly 3,000 others injured on Tuesday.
Hezbollah has vowed to retaliate against Israel, which has declined to comment on the explosions, believed to have been carried out by its spy agency Mossad.
“Pakistan strongly condemns this week’s attacks in Lebanon carried through detonation of electronic equipments,” Foreign Office Spokeswoman Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told reporters.
“Use of cyber and electronic means to commit terrorism in foreign countries is reprehensible.”
She said the attacks showed “Israel’s alarming adventurism in the region,” which was endangering regional peace and security.
“Pakistan reaffirms its support for Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and calls upon the international community to take urgent steps to hold Israel to account on its act of international terrorism and violations of international law,” Baloch added.
This week’s operations, which have appeared to throw Hezbollah into disarray, played out alongside Israel’s 11-month-old war in Gaza and heightened fears of an escalation on its Lebanese border and the risk of a full-blown regional war.
“We are opening a new phase in the war. It requires courage, determination and perseverance from us,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in remarks at an air force base.
The US, which has denied any involvement in the blasts, says it is pursuing intensive diplomacy to avert an escalation of the conflict.
The United Nations Security Council will meet on Friday about the pager blasts after a request by Arab states.
Pakistan PM seeks enhanced trade, climate change cooperation with United Kingdom
- Shehbaz Sharif highlights Pakistan’s economic challenges in a meeting with British High Commissioner
- The Pakistan PM will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa next month
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged cooperation on trade and climate change between Pakistan and the United Kingdom during a meeting with British High Commissioner Jane Marriott on Wednesday, reiterating his administration’s commitment to working closely with the British leadership.
Pakistan and the UK have a long and multifaceted relationship, with the latter hosting a large Pakistani diaspora community. Earlier this month, Pakistan’s deputy premier Ishaq Dar embarked on a five-day official visit to London where he held wide-ranging discussions with the new British administration.
The Pakistani premier also accepted an invitation by King Charles III over a telephone call on Wednesday to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa next month.
“The PM emphasized the need to promote coordination and cooperation on trade and investment, climate change, social connectivity as well as regional and multilateral issues of mutual interest,” the PM Office said in a statement after the meeting.
The prime minister said Pakistan and the UK shared “long and historic” relations that could be expanded through cooperation in various fields. He also highlighted the economic challenges faced by the country and hoped the overseas Pakistanis in Britain would play a key role in strengthening relations between the two sides.
Sharif will attend the Commonwealth meeting from October 21-26.
This will also be the first time King Charles will head the meeting of the global association since his coronation.
Pakistan is a member of the Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 56 countries out of which the vast majority are former British territories.
Pakistani lawyers to convene in Lahore today to protest government’s proposed constitutional amendments
- Government plans to increase the retirement age of superior judges, change chief justice’s appointment process
- An organizer of the convention says Pakistani lawyers are gathering in Lahore to uphold judiciary’s independence
ISLAMABAD: A section of Pakistani lawyers has arranged a convention today, Thursday, in the eastern city of Lahore to protest the government’s proposed constitutional amendments that aim to establish a separate federal constitutional court and increase the parliamentary role in the appointment of judges.
The package of reforms, widely believed to include as many as 22 amendments, is also expected to increase the retirement age of superior judges by three years and change the process by which the Supreme Court chief justice is appointed.
The amendments have raised widespread concerns among opposition parties and legal experts who believe they aim to increase the government’s power in making key judicial appointments and deal with defection of lawmakers during house votes.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan has criticized the constitutional package, saying it is meant to grant an extension to incumbent Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, who is widely viewed to be aligned with the ruling coalition and in opposition to its chief rival, the PTI.
“In today’s convention, lawyers from across Pakistan are participating to voice their concerns about the proposed amendments that are clearly an assault on the independence of the judiciary,” advocate Ishtiaq Ahmad Khan, President of the Insaf Lawyers Forum, told Arab News.
The forum is PTI’s wing among the legal fraternity and one of the organizers of the convention along with the Lahore High Court Bar Association.
“We want to let the government know through this convention that they should back out from the constitutional amendments, otherwise the lawyers will hit the streets to lodge their protest,” he added.
While most political parties have their own lawyers’ wings, the legal community’s politics in Pakistan is mainly divided into two major camps: professional and independent groups. The professional lawyers, led by senior advocate Hamid Khan, is aligned with ex-PM Khan, while the independent faction mainly supports the ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
“This convention is not party-specific,” the Insaf Lawyers Forum’s president added. “Instead, the lawyers are gathering in Lahore for a cause, and the cause is to protect the independence of the judiciary and uphold the rule of law.”
The ruling coalition, comprising the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), is short of at least 13 lawmakers in the National Assembly and four in the Senate to complete the required two-thirds majority for the amendments to pass.
Both parties have since engaged various political players, including the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam of Maulana Fazlur Rehman, to garner support for the amendments.
Russia offers agricultural technology to Pakistan, agrees to modernize fertilizer plants
- Russian deputy minister of industry says his country can train local farmers to boost productivity
- Pakistan and Russia are scheduled to hold 5th Joint Working Group meeting on 26th September
ISLAMABAD: Russia has offered the latest agricultural technology to Pakistan, agreed to share expertise to modernize fertilizer plants and provide training to local farmers to boost productivity, as the government in Islamabad has identified agriculture as a priority sector to strengthen the national economy, according to the state media.
Agriculture has long been the backbone of Pakistan’s economy, but farmers have faced increasing difficulties in recent years due to climate change, which has caused unpredictable weather patterns.
Earlier this year, Pakistan, struggling to boost export revenues, sought China’s help to modernize its agricultural sector during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s five-day visit to that country.
With Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk currently visiting Pakistan, officials from both countries are exploring collaboration in this critical sector.
“Russia will provide modern agricultural machinery to Pakistan in order to boost crop yields and enhance agricultural productivity,” reported Radio Pakistan as Russian Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Aleksei Gruzdev met Federal Minister for Industries, Production and National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain in the federal capital.
Gruzdev also interacted with Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan separately, saying that his country was “keen to offer expertise in modernizing Pakistan’s fertilizer plants and provide training programs for Pakistani farmers.”
The two sides focused on strengthening economic cooperation and exploring new bilateral trade opportunities.
The Russian deputy minister also highlighted his government’s interest in expanding exports or railway machinery and metal products.
The two Pakistani ministers highlighted the significant but untapped potential of trade between both countries.
Pakistan and Russia are scheduled to hold the 5th Joint Working Group meeting, which is scheduled for the 26th of this month.
