ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia has offered a 15 percent investment in the Reko Diq copper and gold mine project in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, according to Pakistani state-owned media on Saturday.
Reko Diq is considered one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold resources, primarily operated by Canada’s Barrick Gold, which holds a 50 percent stake in it.
The remaining stake is owned by three federal state-owned enterprises and the Balochistan provincial government, though Pakistan has also invited Saudi Arabia to invest in the project.
“Saudi Arabia has offered fifteen percent investment in Reko Diq Mining project,” the Radio Pakistan said in one of its reports. “The Kingdom has also offered grants to build road infrastructure around the Reko Diq project.”
“Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) has approved the structure of the offer but the final decision has been left to the Cabinet Committee on Intergovernmental Transactions,” it added.
Pakistan set up the SIFC, a civil-military hybrid body, last year in June with the sole purpose of reviving the frail national economy, dented by low foreign exchange reserves, currency depreciation and record inflation.
Barrick Gold’s top official, Mark Bristow, has also acknowledged the Saudi interest in the project, saying his company would not dilute its equity.
However, he added that Barrick Gold would not oppose any decision by the Pakistan government to sell part of its stake to Saudia Arabia.
Radio Pakistan said the government in Islamabad expects up to $5 billion investment in the mining and agriculture sector by June next year.
Saudi Arabia offers 15% investment in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining venture
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Saudi Arabia offers 15% investment in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining venture
- Reko Diq in Pakistan’s southwest is considered one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold resources
- State-owned media says Pakistan expects up to $5 billion of Saudi investment in mining, agriculture by June 2025
Pakistan reports 99% drop in polio cases, urges more investment at Gavi board meeting
- Pakistan has reported 10 polio cases so far in 2025, compared to 74 in 2024
- Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the only countries where polio is still endemic
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has recorded a 99% decline in polio cases, Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal told the Gavi board meeting on Thursday, calling for more investments to "train and retain" vaccinators.
The global vaccine organization Gavi helps low-income countries buy vaccines to protect against killer diseases. Around one billion children have been immunized as a result of Gavi’s work across the world since 2000.
Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure, making prevention through vaccination critical. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine, along with the completion of the routine immunization schedule for all children, are essential to build strong immunity against the virus.
According to Pakistan’s polio program, 10 cases have been confirmed so far this year, with 74 reported in 2024.
Environmental surveillance carried out earlier this year has detected the virus in 272 sewage samples collected from 127 testing sites across 68 districts, indicating ongoing transmission.
"Pakistan has witnessed over a 99% decline in polio cases — a testament to our coordinated strategy, dedication of frontline workers and the collective efforts of all stakeholders," the health ministry quoted Kamal as saying following a virtual joint session of Gavi and Pakistan's Polio Oversight Board.
However, the statement did not specify the starting point for this decline.
"Strengthening the integrated immunization system requires continued support from both Gavi and the Polio Oversight Board,” he added. “We need additional investments to ensure the training and retention of vaccinators."
He called for implementing a joint strategy to reach zero-dose children and mobilizing biker teams to access far-flung areas.
The health minister said "coordinated microplanning and effective monitoring" between polio and the Expanded Program on Immunization was improving immunization coverage and delivering results.
Kamal said polio eradication remained the government's top priority, highlighting how Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif personally oversees the eradication efforts.
Pakistan, one of the last two countries where polio remains endemic, has made significant progress in curbing the virus, with annual cases dropping from around 20,000 in the early 1990s to just eight in 2018.
The country reported six cases in 2023 and only one in 2021.
Pakistan launched its polio eradication program in 1994, but efforts have repeatedly been hindered by widespread vaccine misinformation and resistance from hardline religious groups who claim immunization campaigns are a Western conspiracy to sterilize Muslim children or a front for espionage.
Militant groups have also targeted polio workers and their security escorts, often with deadly attacks that have hampered vaccination drives, particularly in the country’s remote and conflict-prone regions.
Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where the poliovirus remains endemic.
Pakistan’s deputy PM to attend OIC meeting in Istanbul, call for Israel-Iran ceasefire
- OIC meets this weekend amid Pakistan-India tensions and Israel-Iran escalation
- Ishaq Dar will hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts on conference sidelines
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar will attend a meeting of foreign ministers from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul this weekend and call for an immediate Israel-Iran ceasefire to help restore peace in the Middle East, the foreign office said on Thursday.
The 51st session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers is expected to focus on coordinated efforts to de-escalate tensions between the two regional rivals, along with the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The meeting comes at a time of heightened volatility for the bloc, following Pakistan’s brief but intense military standoff with India last month and Iran’s escalating confrontation with Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
"During the plenary session, the DPM/FM will share Pakistan’s perspective on the developments in South Asia following the ceasefire arrangement between Pakistan and India and the situation in the Middle East after Israel’s recent aggression against Iran and other regional states," the foreign office spokesperson, Shafqat Ali Khan, said in a statement.
He added that Dar would advocate for peace in the Middle East and highlight the need for humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza during the meeting on June 21 and 22.
Beyond the Middle East, Dar is also expected to address broader issues of concern to the Muslim world, urging the international community to "combat the escalating tide of Islamophobia" by addressing rising extremism and militancy, as well as the growing threat of climate change.
He will also reaffirm Pakistan's commitment to the principles and objectives of the OIC in addressing challenges faced by Muslim nations globally.
Dar, who also holds the portfolio of foreign minister, is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from other OIC member states on the sidelines of the conference.
According to the foreign office, he will participate in an award ceremony honoring Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with the “OIC Youth Forum Grand Youth Award.”
The high-level meeting is taking place amid media reports that the United States is weighing options, including potentially joining Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
Iran launched retaliatory missile attacks last week after Israeli forces bombed sites linked to its nuclear and military infrastructure on June 13.
Tehran says more than 224 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the strikes. Israel has also reported over two dozen civilian deaths.
Pakistan says 3,000 evacuated from Iran as stranded students plead for help
- Foreign Office says evacuations are underway via land borders and special flights from neighboring countries
- Pakistani students stranded in Iran express fear for their safety amid ongoing Israeli missile and airstrikes
ISLAMABAD: The foreign office said on Thursday about 3,000 Pakistani nationals have been evacuated from Iran following the Israeli attack, adding the country’s diplomatic mission is working to facilitate stranded students seeking urgent evacuation.
A week of Israeli air and missile strikes, which began on June 13, has led to the killing of many of Iran’s top-ranking military officials and ordinary people. In response, Tehran’s retaliatory strikes have also killed about two dozen civilians in Israel.
Following Friday’s escalation, Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights, stranding hundreds of expatriates, including Pakistani religious tourists, students and workers.
“The evacuation is moving smoothly and so far, nearly 3,000 Pakistani nationals have already been evacuated,” foreign office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan told reporters in his weekly media briefing.
“Our consulates in Zahedan and Mashhad have been active round the clock, extending all possible facilitation and support to our nationals who are in Iran,” he said, expressing gratitude to the Iranian authorities for their sensitivity and all possible facilitation and help extended in this process.
Khan said the Pakistani mission was using multiple routes to evacuate citizens, including via the Gabr and Taftan border crossings, through Ashgabat, Baku and even Baghdad, through special flights.
“It’s an ongoing process as there are logistical challenges at times, but we are working together with the Iranian authorities to resolve them if a problem arises,” he added.
The spokesperson said there is a sizeable Pakistani community in Iran, with many of them living in the neighboring state for years with their families after marrying local people.
STRANDED STUDENTS
Speaking to Arab News from various cities across Iran, Pakistani students expressed serious concerns about their safety and appealed for immediate evacuation.
“I have been stranded here since the suspension of flight operations due to the regional tensions,” Muhammad Hussain, a Pakistani medical student at Qom University of Medical Sciences, told Arab News over the phone.
“The situation is becoming more tense, we are now hearing continuous explosions, which has increased our concern for safety,” he said, adding that he tried to reach out to the Pakistan embassy as well who asked him to travel to the Chabahar border.
“I am unable to get any means to go there,” he said, urging the Pakistan government and the embassy to arrange special transport to take them to border.
“Our families are extremely worried, and we just want to go back,” he added.
Noman Khan, an MBBS student in Urmia, a city in Iran’s Azerbaijan province, said he was part of a group of Pakistani students, including 10 girls, awaiting repatriation amid the ongoing situation.
“We contacted the embassy to evacuate us and, about two days ago, they asked us to book a bus ourselves, promising to send the payment,” he informed, adding that even after more than 60 hours, they were still waiting for the payment without which they were unable to get transport to cross border.
“We have female students with us as well who are also scared as nearby cities were also hit by missiles,” he continued.
“Our city is about two hours away from Tabriz and almost two to three drones were shot down in our city as well.”
Saman Yunus, another medical student at Iran University of Medical Sciences, said that due to the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict, they had been traveling for the past four days.
“The Pakistani Embassy advised us that it would be safer to go to the Chabahar border and assured us that any issues related to accommodation or other needs would be resolved within minutes,” she told Arab News.
However, she said the biggest problem they faced was that the border was not open 24/7 and there was no accommodation available.
“As a result, we had to spend the entire night on the roadside and we contacted both our university and the embassy, but no help was provided,” she continued, adding they were now heading to Pakistani consulate in Zahedan, hoping they would facilitate a safe border crossing.
“A representative there has assured us that they will handle it as soon as possible and ensure we safely cross border,” she added.
Pakistan unveils new EV policy with over $353 million in subsidies for electric bikes, rickshaws
- The new policy for 2025-30 aims to cut $1 billion in fuel costs and 4.5 million tons of emissions
- Pakistan currently has about 70,000 electric motorcycles, 5,200 electric cars and 450 electric buses
ISLAMABAD: The government on Thursday unveiled Pakistan’s new Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy 2025-30, announcing a five-year subsidy of over Rs100 billion ($353 million) for electric bikes and rickshaws.
The move comes amid a steady rise in electric vehicle adoption in a market traditionally dominated by Japanese automakers. Pakistan’s urban areas exhibit some of the world’s highest levels of air pollution, with road transport being a major contributor.
Chinese and Korean EV brands are increasingly entering the local market, making these vehicles a more frequent sight in cities such as Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.
“Total subsidy over five years will be over Rs100 billion and it will basically be focused on the two-and-three wheelers,” Haroon Akhtar Khan, a close aide to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, told a news conference. “We will have subsidized financing for 116,053 electric bikes, 3,171 rickshaws.”
“A Rs9 billion [$31 million] subsidy will be allocated, and it is already there in the 2025-26 budget,” he continued.
Khan added the government also allocated a 25 percent quota for women to increase their mobility.
He projected the initiative will help with the annual savings of Rs283 billion ($1 billion) in fuel costs and a reduction of 4.5 million tons of carbon emissions.
Khan said Pakistan’s new EV policy was aimed at disincentivizing internal combustion engine vehicles and promoting electric mobility to help cut greenhouse gas emissions that damage the earth’s ozone layer.
He informed Pakistan has around 70,000 electric motorcycles, 5,200 electric cars and 450 electric buses, adding the government issued 61 manufacturing licenses for electric two- and three-wheelers including motorcycles and rickshaws.
Khan also acknowledged the country lacks adequate EV charging infrastructure and faces challenges related to the absence of safety and quality standards.
He said the government aims for 30 percent of all new vehicles produced over the next five years to be electric.
“So, we are establishing new electric vehicle testing rules, safety and emission standards,” he said.
“We have to make sure that if anybody is manufacturing an electric vehicle there are no emissions,” he continued. “Another thing is battery disposal. We don’t want to create any environmental problem that the battery is not disposed properly.”
The country previously approved an ambitious National Electric Vehicles Policy (NEVP) in 2019, aiming for electric vehicles to make up 30 percent of all passenger car and heavy-duty truck sales by 2030.
The policy set an even more ambitious target of making 90 percent of all vehicle sales electric by 2040.
Pakistan hosts Bangladeshi academic delegation under OIC’s scientific cooperation framework
- Vice chancellors of Bangladesh universities met counterparts from top 15 Pakistani universities
- Once a single country, Pakistan and Bangladesh have begun slowly rebuilding diplomatic ties
ISLAMABAD: A seven-member delegation from Bangladeshi universities is currently visiting Pakistan to deepen academic and scientific cooperation between the two countries, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s coordinating body for scientific collaboration said on Thursday.
Pakistan and Bangladesh, once a single country before the bloody 1971 war, have slowly begun rebuilding ties after last year’s political upheaval in Dhaka, which saw the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajid, long viewed as critical of Islamabad and aligned with New Delhi.
She fled to India by helicopter after her administration’s downfall in August 2024, with Dhaka now seeking her extradition.
The ties between India and Bangladesh’s interim government have become frosty, creating space for Islamabad and Dhaka to re-engage after decades of limited contact.
“The forum brought together a seven-member Bangladeshi delegation comprising vice chancellors and senior representatives from leading universities, and vice chancellors from 15 top Pakistani universities, which are part of COMSTECH Consortium of Excellence,” the OIC-COMSTECH said in a statement, adding that academics from Bangladesh are visiting Pakistan from June 16-21.
The visiting delegation termed their ongoing visit as “historical, highly productive and promising” for academic collaboration between Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Vice chancellors from Pakistani and Bangladeshi universities held discussions aimed at deepening academic and scientific cooperation, it added.
The meetings focused on expanding collaboration in key areas including student and faculty exchange programs, scholarship opportunities, joint research initiatives apart from sharing academic expertise.
The participants of the meeting also agreed that each university would appoint a focal person to ensure effective follow-up on commitments made during the visit.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to Pakistan Iqbal Hussain Khan, the chief guest at the event, praised COMSTECH for offering scholarships, organizing the visit and facilitating meaningful academic exchanges between higher education institutions of the two countries.
In May, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar agreed to strengthen bilateral relationship with Bangladesh and maintain high-level contacts with its leadership.
Pakistan’s government launched a new program in December 2024 through which it will provide fully funded scholarships to 300 Bangladeshi students.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Bangladesh Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus in New York last year at a ceremony hosted by the Bangladeshi leader to mark the completion of 50 years of Bangladesh’s membership in the United Nations.
Both sides had agreed to forge stronger ties and enhance bilateral cooperation in various fields during their meeting.
