Category: Information Technology

Wyeth Pakistan Limited – an affiliate of Pfizer Pakistan Limited and Chughtai Lab, have joined hands to improve access to vaccines by establishing vaccination centers at various spots across the country.

This initiative is driven by core values and commitment of both Pfizer and Chughtai Lab to impact patients’ lives.

The signing ceremony of the partnership was held at Chughtai Lab office, Lahore, on Tuesday, November 24, 2020. According to details shared by senior executives of both entities, Chughtai Lab will be offering vaccination services at several centers in major cities of Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad among others.

Speaking on the occasion, Director Operations Chughtai Lab Dr. Omar Chughtai said, “We are pleased to join Pfizer Pakistan in this partnership so as to extend the reach of quality vaccines to eligible patients. This service has been designed to overcome the lack of vaccine infrastructure in our major cities, especially for adult patients.

S.M. Wajeeh, Country Manager of Wyeth Pakistan and Pfizer Pakistan, in his message said, “Pfizer is committed to extend innovative solutions to our people for better health outcomes. Through this partnership, we aim to unleash the true potential of innovative vaccines so that people can easily get vaccinated under the supervision of fully trained and qualified staff at Chughtai Lab.”

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Pakistan Railways is on course to procure 230 high-speed passenger coaches and 820 freight vans, sources close to the matter have revealed. This revamp is a tentative development to modernize the country’s outdated railway sector, according to reports.

Reportedly the first phase of this action plan will help procure 46 modern passenger coaches. 184 similar coaches will be restructured at the Carriage Factory in Islamabad. Each passenger coach will include 80 compartments for the economy and air-conditioned class. 30 parlor cars and 20 vans will be attached for luggage and the train’s braking mechanism.

200 freight vans are scheduled for import, while 620 vans will be restructured at the Railway’s factory.

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The Karachi-Peshawar Main-Line-1 railway project was finalized by representatives from both Pakistan and China on Monday. Railways Minister, Sheikh Rasheed, and Chinese Ambassador, Nong Rong, met in Islamabad to set a recurring timeline. Both sides discussed bilateral relations and railway projects, according to reports.

Previously the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved the project of Pakistan Railways for upgrading the existing ML-1 railway track. The establishment of a dry port near Havelian was also set in motion.

According to a press statement issued by the Finance Ministry, the project was approved for US$ 6.8 billion on a cost-sharing basis between Pakistan and China.

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The federal cabinet approved the suspension of bilateral loan repayments worth $2.7 billion announced earlier by G-20 countries in April.

The cabinet reviewed a summary prior to announcing this decision. 16 out of 21 countries have already provided 27 loan agreements, valuing $800 million. According to the news report, the cabinet would approve loan agreements worth $1 billion, with the remaining five countries including, Saudi Arabia and Japan, in the coming few weeks.

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Pakistan to Get Debt Servicing Relief of $2.7 Billion from G20

Twenty-one countries suspended loan repayment of $1.8 billion for Pakistan for the period of May 1 to December 31, 2020, followed by the suspension of bilateral loan repayment of $900 million from January 1 to June 30, 2021, with the grace period of one year.

Altogether, Pakistan received a loan suspension of $2.7 billion from the G-20 initiative of suspending loan repayments for COVID-19 hit countries.

There are a total of 57 agreements between Pakistan and the 21 countries in concern. The Economic Affairs Division clubbed the loan agreements of special areas and sectors so that a standard loan agreement can be signed with each bilateral donor.

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Independent Power Producers (IPPs) have refused to accept the Federal Government’s proposed payment of Rs. 400 billion in three years, Business Recorder reported on Wednesday.

IPPs have reportedly termed this proposal as a violation of an already signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs). One of the clauses of MoUs signed in August 2020 states,

“The parties recognize that the payment of the receivables of the IPPs is an integral part of the MoU as a key consideration.

The Power Purchaser and the GoP shall devise a mechanism for the payment of the outstanding receivables within the agreed time period, which shall be reflected in the final agreement to be signed. The power purchaser shall ensure adherence to its contractual obligations, and GoP and power purchaser shall work towards resolution of the Expert’s adjudication for the relevant IPPs.”

These discussions were held between the IPPs, established under the Power Policies 1994 and 2002, and the government. The government’s delegation was comprised of Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Power, Tabish Gohar, Federal Land Commission Chairman, Babar Yaqoob Fateh Muhammad, Secretary Power, Ali Raza Bhutta, officials of ISI, Acting CEO Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA-G), CFO and other legal experts of the CPPA-G.

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Power Sector Reforms & New Tariff Regime to Save Rs. 300 Billion in 3 Years

Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Asad Umar, said that the review in agreements with IPPs would help in reducing electricity prices by Rs. 1.40 per unit. The government is expecting a monetary benefit of Rs. 840 billion in 10-12 years period.

Furthermore, he said that in 2022, the price would go down by 74 paisas per unit, whereas in 2023, it would further decline by 66 paisas per unit. Overall, this is likely to result in a relief of Rs. 300 billion to consumers.

The government has shared plans with IPPs to clear their debts in three years in annual installments. This proposal has also been rejected by the IPPs.

IPPs agreed to the revised terms and conditions on the promise that the outstanding amounts would be cleared in a lump sum, but now the government is trying to get them to agree to installments on the argument that IMF will not allow full payment in one go.

However, IPPs have insisted that it will be hard to get their sponsors to agree as the key commitment of the government was to pay full overdue amount.

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To facilitate Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), Special Talent Exchange Program (STEP) has developed a Mobile phone application called “Equal Access”.

The application has been developed with the support of the British Council and in collaboration with Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

The launching ceremony of the application was held at the Parliament House, where Speaker National Assembly, Asad Qaiser, was the Chief Guest. Member National Assembly (MNA), Munazza Hassan, PTA Chairman, Maj. General (R) Amir Azeem Bajwa, Executive Director STEP, Atif Sheikh, and Deputy Director British Council, Mark Crossey, were also present on this occasion.

Speaker National Assembly, Chairman PTA, and British Council Deputy Director expressed their views and appreciated the efforts to facilitate special persons.

The application, “Equal Access”, will provide information in accessible formats, including Sign Language Interpretation, Sound Description, Dark Mode, and resizable text formats for persons with disabilities. Equal Access contains information related to disability services, stakeholders, and laws in Pakistan.

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Effective protection of IPR comprising of Copyrights, Patents, and Trade Mark is critical for attracting and retaining FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) in the country, findings of OICCI’s latest IPR survey 2020 stated.

Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) announced the key findings of its latest Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) survey, which was conducted during September and October. It reflects the assessment of the foreign investors on the state of intellectual property protection in Pakistan.

The respondents of OICCI IPR survey 2020 expressed the concern that IPR protection does not attract due attention from the key stakeholders, including the government, Law Enforcement Authorities (LEA), media, and even the consumers.

Long-drawn judicial proceedings, lack of awareness and appreciation regarding IPR, and lengthy timelines for granting IP rights were some of the key concerns highlighted in the survey. Overall, 40 percent of the respondents indicated that it takes 1 to 3 years to resolve a standard IPR dispute. Respondents also expressed concern regarding the penalty on IPR violation being insufficient to act as a deterrent and the IP Tribunals not being fully functional.

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Currently, over 90 percent of the OICCI members prefer to rely on their resources for monitoring the threat of IPR violations. However, the majority of the IP owners have expressed aspirations to work in partnership with the government authorities for a better IPR regime in Pakistan.

The foreign investors participating in the survey expect that the IPR regulator in Pakistan, IPOP, would take the lead in strengthening the IPR regime in Pakistan to automate and fast track the process of registering IP. The respondents also expected the IPOP to promote awareness on the importance of IPR, its impact on business and investment, upgrade skills, and motivate LEA to proactively respond to the abuse of IPR.

Commenting on the survey results, President OICCI, Haroon Rashid, remarked,

Despite some improvement in the Priority Watch list in USTR Special 301 Report of 2016, Pakistan IPR environment has failed to instill a sense of confidence among the foreign investors and IP owners, that the country values IPR protection and will help create an enabling environment for innovation, creativity and all forms of IP to attract FDI and retain talented and innovative individuals in the country.

He added that the concerns of the foreign investors are supported by the loss of revenue ranging from 5 percent to over 20 percent, as reported by 42 percent of the respondents.

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The Indian streaming service SonyLIV is now available in Pakistan and local sports fans can watch live matches on it. Although there has been no official announcement of the launch, the streaming service can be viewed easily in the country.

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Users can download the SonyLIV application from their app stores, register themselves using a Pakistani Mobile phone number, and then pay for the service in Pakistani rupees.

This comes as good news for millions of Pakistani sports fans who had previously been unable to watch their favorite sports broadcasts because the SonyLIV application telecasts live sports action including, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Nations League, UFC, Big Bash League, Live Cricket, WWE, tennis matches, and many other sports.

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Pakistani cricket fans who had been unable to watch cricket in high-resolution will also be able to watch the majority of Pakistan matches on the SonyLIV application.

Users can view only limited content for free but with advertisements, and will need to subscribe to the application’s premium service to gain full access without any advertisements.

The SonyLiv application also offers TV series and movies for the viewers to enjoy, but the selection is pretty limited.

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Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on National Health Services, Dr. Faisal Sultan, has said that Coronavirus vaccines will be widely available in the second quarter of 2021.

In a recent interview with a local news channel, Dr. Sultan discussed the ongoing second wave of Coronavirus in Pakistan, the country’s testing capacity, and its plans to procure effective COVID-19 vaccines next year.

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He revealed that there are two committees working in the National Health Services. One is made up of experts that is exploring the potential vaccines Pakistan should procure. This committee has so far recommended six vaccines. Meanwhile, the other committee is tasked with deciding the course of action to procure these recommended vaccines.

When asked which vaccine out of the six Pakistan intends to get, Dr. Sultan responded that the country will procure the vaccine that will be earliest available to it.

Although Pakistan has not placed any advance orders for the vaccines, the country is currently in active negotiations with the manufacturers of these vaccines.

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He said that Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) in its meeting last week, with Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue, Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, approved the provision of a technical supplementary grant of $150 million for the purchase of the Coronavirus vaccines.

He added that the vaccines will be delivered to frontline healthcare workers and the elderly on priority. Overall, around 10 million people will be provided a vaccine cover under the aforementioned arrangement.

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