PM Imran arrives in Jeddah, holds talks with Saudi crown prince

Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Saudi Arabia on Friday on a three-day official visit.

Prime Minister Khan was warmly received by Saudi Crown Prince and Defence Minister Mohammad bin Salman upon arrival at Jeddah Airport.

Later, the prime minister and Saudi prince held delegation-level talks at the Royal Court and discussed bilateral ties as well as the ways to further strengthen the cooperation.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa were present on the occasion.
The two countries signed multiple MoUs and agreements to enhance bilateral cooperation in the fields of energy, media, prisoners exchange and others.

Both Prime Minister Khan and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman witnessed the signing of the agreements. Both the countries signed an agreement to form Supreme Coordination Council to strengthen the bilateral cooperation in multiple fields.
An agreement for the exchange of convicted prisoners was also signed between the two countries besides another agreement to counter the crimes.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia also signed framework agreements on energy projects and environmental protection. The two countries signed MoUs to enhance cooperation to curb smuggling as well as on workers’ recruitment.

The crown prince also hosted a dinner reception for the prime minister and his delegation.

The prime minister, along with a high-level delegation, is visiting Saudi Arabia at the invitation of the crown prince. He is accompanied by FM Qureshi, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and Senator Faisal Javed. Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa was already in Jeddah.

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PM Imran arrives in Jeddah, holds talks with Saudi crown prince

Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Saudi Arabia on Friday on a three-day official visit.

Prime Minister Khan was warmly received by Saudi Crown Prince and Defence Minister Mohammad bin Salman upon arrival at Jeddah Airport.

Later, the prime minister and Saudi prince held delegation-level talks at the Royal Court and discussed bilateral ties as well as the ways to further strengthen the cooperation.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa were present on the occasion.
The two countries signed multiple MoUs and agreements to enhance bilateral cooperation in the fields of energy, media, prisoners exchange and others.

Both Prime Minister Khan and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman witnessed the signing of the agreements. Both the countries signed an agreement to form Supreme Coordination Council to strengthen the bilateral cooperation in multiple fields.
An agreement for the exchange of convicted prisoners was also signed between the two countries besides another agreement to counter the crimes.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia also signed framework agreements on energy projects and environmental protection. The two countries signed MoUs to enhance cooperation to curb smuggling as well as on workers’ recruitment.

The crown prince also hosted a dinner reception for the prime minister and his delegation.

The prime minister, along with a high-level delegation, is visiting Saudi Arabia at the invitation of the crown prince. He is accompanied by FM Qureshi, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and Senator Faisal Javed. Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa was already in Jeddah.

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Pakistan’s largest COVID-19 vaccination centre established in Karachi

The largest COVID-19 vaccination centre of Pakistan has been established in Karachi’s Expo Centre with having a capacity to inoculate 30,000 on a daily basis.

The Sindh government has established a mega vaccination centre at Karachi’s Expo Centre in order to expedite the COVID-19 vaccination process.

The mega vaccination centre will be made functional from May 9 (Sunday) where 30,000 people could get COVID-19 jabs in a single day.

The vaccination centre will function under the direct supervision of Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and the vaccination process will be continued for 24 hours a day.

Earlier in the day, the provincial government notified that private hospital staffers will be on duty while the vaccination centres shall too remain open sans three eid days as the country fends off the global pandemic woes propping up in the third wave.

According to the notification released by the Sindh government, except for the three gazetted Eid days, from 13- to 15 May, the vaccination centres will remain open on all federally announced holidays.

However, Eidul Fitr holidays have been cancelled across Sindh for all healthcare workers who are performing duties on the Sindh government’s payroll in view of rising Covid cases.

Moreover, the provincial health authorities had also decided to reopen the field isolation centre at Expo Centre in Karachi after witnessing a sudden increase in the number of Covid-19 cases and a rise in positivity rate.

It may be noted here that the functionalisation of Pakistan’s largest vaccination centre in Karachi is being made at the beginning of a complete lockdown in the province.

Except for Sindh, all provinces including Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) notified the implementation of tougher restrictions ahead of Eidul Fitr from May 8.

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Pakistan’s largest COVID-19 vaccination centre established in Karachi

The largest COVID-19 vaccination centre of Pakistan has been established in Karachi’s Expo Centre with having a capacity to inoculate 30,000 on a daily basis.

The Sindh government has established a mega vaccination centre at Karachi’s Expo Centre in order to expedite the COVID-19 vaccination process.

The mega vaccination centre will be made functional from May 9 (Sunday) where 30,000 people could get COVID-19 jabs in a single day.

The vaccination centre will function under the direct supervision of Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and the vaccination process will be continued for 24 hours a day.

Earlier in the day, the provincial government notified that private hospital staffers will be on duty while the vaccination centres shall too remain open sans three eid days as the country fends off the global pandemic woes propping up in the third wave.

According to the notification released by the Sindh government, except for the three gazetted Eid days, from 13- to 15 May, the vaccination centres will remain open on all federally announced holidays.

However, Eidul Fitr holidays have been cancelled across Sindh for all healthcare workers who are performing duties on the Sindh government’s payroll in view of rising Covid cases.

Moreover, the provincial health authorities had also decided to reopen the field isolation centre at Expo Centre in Karachi after witnessing a sudden increase in the number of Covid-19 cases and a rise in positivity rate.

It may be noted here that the functionalisation of Pakistan’s largest vaccination centre in Karachi is being made at the beginning of a complete lockdown in the province.

Except for Sindh, all provinces including Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) notified the implementation of tougher restrictions ahead of Eidul Fitr from May 8.

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Bill Gates, Melinda Gates’ daughter breaks silence on parents’ divorce

The eldest daughter of Bill Gates and Melinda Gates, Jennifer Gates, has reacted to shocking divorce, saying that ‘it’s been a challenging stretch of time for our whole family.’

Jennifer Gates took to Instagram Stories to share her thoughts about her parents’ divorce.

She said, “Hi friends, By now, many of you have heard the news that my parents are separating. It’s been a challenging stretch of time for our whole family.”

“I’m still learning how to best support my own process and emotions as well as family members at this time, and am grateful for the space to do so. I won’t personally comment further on anything around the separation, but please know that your kind words and support mean the world to me.”

“Thank you for understanding our desire for privacy while we navigate the next phases of our lives. With love and respect, Jenn xx,” she concluded.

Bill Gates and Melinda had announced divorce after 27 years of marriage on Monday, stating that they “no longer believe we can grow together as a couple”.

The pair in a joint statement posted on Twitter said, “After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage.”

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Govt to boost development spending by 40% in 2021-22: Tarin

Even as it grapples with the coronavirus pandemic, Pakistan plans on boosting expenditure by 40% for large infrastructure projects to provide more jobs and raise productivity.

This was revealed by Minister for Finance Shaukat Tarin to Bloomberg in an interview on Thursday.

Tarin, who was recently given the helm of Pakistan's financial matters, is due to present the budget next month.

He said in the new fiscal year, the government will set aside as much as Rs900 billion ($6 billion) for development expenditure.

According to Bloomberg, Tarin said that the economy needs to expand by 5%.

“That’s the bare minimum we need for a country this size,” he said. “There are almost 110 million youth.”

“We need 2 million jobs every year,” he said. “If we do not go into growth mode, we will have a major crisis on the streets.”

Bloomberg's report said that Tarin's plan, therefore features a new approach. It notes that his predecessor's move was to lower spending so the growing deficit can be arrested. Tarin has estimated the budget deficit to be " a little above 7% of gross domestic product in the current fiscal year through June, against 8.1% in the previous year".

Therefore, the deficit in FY2021-22 will reduce by 1 or 1.5 percentage points.

Under the $6bn loan programme with the IMF, balancing the budget will be key for the government and Tarin has asked the Fund to ease tough conditions, the report notes.

IMF has projected 4% GDP but the government has aimed for a percentage point higher in the coming fiscal year and Tarin plans on raising it to 6% in the year after.

Tarin also told Bloomberg that he is targeting a larger tax revenue collection in FY22 — Rs6 trillion versus this year's target of Rs4.75 tr.

“Unless we get more revenues, forget about any incentives to boost the economy.”

Speaking more about his talks with the IMF, Tarin said: “All we are saying is that we are just basically going to give them alternate ways of achieving the same objective.”

This includes a greater focus on revenue generation and reduction of energy debt.

Tarin said the aim is for this programme to be "the last IMF bailout in Pakistan’s history".

The finance minister will also be making use of $20bn in tapped funds from Asian Development Bank and World Bank.

Tech exports are planned to go up to $8bn in two years. This year they are estimated to have clocked in at $2 billion.

Pakistan will also be selling global sukuk bonds soon.

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Remaining PSL 6 matches likely to be held in UAE: PCB

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the six franchises of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) held a meeting on Friday to decide the future course of action related to the remaining 20 matches of PSL 6.

The group had a 360-degree discussion, which also considered feedback from the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).

During the meeting, the UAE emerged as the preferred venue for the remaining 20 matches. Since the Pakistan cricket team is expected to depart for the United Kingdom on June 23, the PCB said that it will use this time to work with the Emirates Cricket Board to check if the event can be successfully delivered within the available time.

"We had an interactive and productive meeting in which we considered a number of factors, said PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said. "While the UAE has emerged as a preferred venue, a number of challenges remain, which will be worked through over the coming days. We remain committed to doing everything possible to complete the PSL 6.”

The PCB said it will also work on a revised tournament schedule, while it will liaise with the ECB in relation to finalising playing and training facilities, hotel bookings, ground transportation, and visitors’ visas.

The board said it will carry out a detailed financial and risk assessment as well as cost analysis before reporting back to the franchises, who will then review before a decision on the event venue is confirmed

 

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