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Government decides to purchase 1.2M doses of vaccine from China



Government decides to purchase 1.2M doses of vaccine from China

https://nation.com.pk/NewsSource/haber
Anadolu
December 31, 2020


On Thursday, Pakistan reported the highest single-day spike in coronavirus cases during the last two weeks, recording nearly 2,500 new cases, according to official data.

With 2,475 fresh infections, the country's total caseload rose to 479,715, including 435,073 recoveries. The recoveries are up to 90.7% from the earlier 86%.

58 more people died due to coronavirus in the last 24 hours, jumped the death toll to 10,105.
Pakistan was one of the countries where coronavirus cases started to significantly drop in mid-July, however since Nov. 1 new cases spiked in the country.

To contain the second wave, authorities have implemented lockdowns in virus-affected zones, along with a general ban on public meetings and rallies.

The government decided to purchase 1.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from Chinese state-owned company Sinopharm.
 
China gives $100m grant for road rehabilitation

Four sections of National Highway (N-5) in Sindh will be reconstructed


Shahbaz Rana
December 31, 2020


photo reuters file



ISLAMABAD: China on Thursday gave a $100 million grant to Pakistan for rehabilitating a road that had been damaged by floods 10 years ago, indicating a shift in Beijing’s policy of only extending loans to its strategic ally.

The $100 million grant was the highest amount given by China in recent years to Pakistan, announced Ministry of Economic Affairs.

A Letter of Exchange for rehabilitation of specific sections of National Highway N-5 project was signed by both sides, according to the ministry.

Minister for Economic Affairs Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar and Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong witnessed the signing ceremony.

Under this agreement, Government of China will provide grant assistance of RMB 659.8 million or $100 million for rehabilitation of four sections having 66 kilometer length in total of National Highway (N-5) between Hala, district Matiari and Moro, District Naushahro Feroze, in Sindh province. The project will help to improve road infrastructure and augment the north-south connectivity.

Earlier, China had committed to give a grant for New Gwadar International Airport construction that has a total estimated value of $230 million.

The Ministry of Planning documents suggested that China was providing a grant of 1.67 billion yuan for the airport and the share of Chinese grant in total construction cost was 63.3%.

China also agreed to extend debt relief worth $732 million to Pakistan under G-20 debt relief initiative on loans and interest payments maturing between the period May 2020 to June 2021.

In recent years, China has become the single largest bilateral lender to Pakistan due to a gradual shift in Pakistan’s policy from west to east. Chinese authorities have been giving commercial loans, concessional loans and project loans to Pakistan to meet its financing needs.

The National Highway 5 (N5) is an important road that extends from the south part to the north and west border in Pakistan, and carries a large amount of traffic capacity. Unfortunately, this road was seriously damaged by the record flood in 2010.
At the request of the Pakistani government, the Chinese government helped in repairing parts of N5 and N55 sections during 2011 and 2016.

With the joint efforts by the Pakistani and Chinese workers, the rehabilitation work was completed at the end of 2016, and greatly improved the road conditions of the relevant sections.

Considering the importance of the N5 road, the Chinese government agrees to rehabilitate the remaining 66 kilometers of the N5 road with Chinese grant in accordance with the previous bilateral agreement, said the Chinese ambassador.

The ambassador added that the new project of rehabilitation of N5 road was the largest road project funded by Chinese grant in recent years in Pakistan.

The implementation of this project will further increase the traffic capacity, while facilitating people’s travel along the route.

The construction project will also create considerable employment, and promote related building materials and transportation sectors along the route, he added.

The embassy will work closely with EAD and other relevant departments to ensure that the project starts at the earliest. “To be rich, build roads first,” Rong said.

During the meeting between Chinese ambassador and economic affairs minister, Pakistan-China economic relations, CPEC projects and other matters of mutual interest were also discussed.

Pakistan and China have been planning to hold next round of Joint Cooperation Committee of the CPEC.

Pakistan proposed January 12 for holding the 10th JCC meeting but the final decision will be taken by Beijing, being host this time.

The minister appreciated the significant work of Joint Working Groups on Socio-economic Development and Transport Infrastructure under the CPEC.

He highlighted that the socioeconomic projects agreed therein were in line with the vision of the PTI government for socio-economic uplift of the common people and enhanced economic activities in the country.

Both the sides also discussed the progress of on-going projects financed by the Government of China The economic affairs minister also appreciated the Chinese assistance for combating coronavirus pandemic and locust attack.
 
China’s Shangdong province to build industrial Park in Pakistan

East China's Shandong province that reported strong economic growth in the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-15) has announced its foreign development plan that included setting up an industrial park in Pakistan.

The province’s Governor Guo Shuqing, who is here to attend the on going National People's Congress session said they will be coming up with heavy investment in Pakistan during next five year. “ We attach great to our relations with Pakistan, ”, he added.
 
Pakistan to purchase 1.2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses from Chinese firm


Hamza Zakir
Dec 31 ·

The Government of Pakistan is all set to purchase a total of 1.2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses from Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm.

The news was shared by Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhary, who took to Twitter to announce that the cabinet committee has decided to initially purchase 1.2 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Sinopharm.
 
China Pak Solidarity ............China in Action: 2 tons of masks,test kit ventilators, medical protective clothes worth 67 million rupees successfully handed over at Khunjerab.. The supplies will be handed over to Government of Gilgit-Baltistan.

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Good but the numbers are too low.
 
China dismisses ‘groundless’ media reports about ending financial support to Pakistan


Hamza Zakir
Dec 29 2020

In the wake of multiple false reports – largely coming from the Indian media – claiming that China is backing away from its promises of financial support to Pakistan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) initiative, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson has publicly rejected the reports as being ‘groundless’ and reaffirmed his country’s continued support to Pakistan.

According to a report by Business Recorder, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said during a press briefing in Beijing that any reports talking about China suspending its financial support to Pakistan are groundless. If anything, he affirmed that both countries are resolutely pushing forward towards the construction of CPEC mega projects.

“Such reports are groundless. As an important pilot project of the BRI, CPEC has maintained positive momentum of development since its inception in 2013. Amid the COVID-19 epidemic, there is no stop of the construction, no job cut and no withdrawal of workforce of the CPEC projects, which effectively supports Pakistan in fighting the epidemic and stabilizing the economy.

These are facts that my colleagues and I shared with you on several occasions,” he said in response to a question posed to him about the reports during the press briefing.

Zhou stressed that China’s contribution to the Belt Road Initiative (BRI) has surged despite the global economic recession and that it has been committed to supporting its BRI partners as much as possible even during such trying times.

“I want to stress that China’s input in the BRI, including CPEC, has increased despite global economic recession. In the first three quarters this year, China’s direct investment in non-financial sectors in BRI partner countries grew by around 30% year on year. China has provided as much support and assistance as possible to help many BRI partners combat COVID-19 and recover economy,” he said.

Moreover, he also dismissed reports suggesting that China is seeking additional guarantees from the Pakistani government for its $6 billion ML-1 project loan, calling them “simply baseless”.
 
Despite odds, China continues to invest in Pakistan

In 2020, two countries maintained pace of work, expand cooperation


Shakeel Ahmad Ramay
January 03, 2021

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ISLAMABAD: Year 2020 proved to be yet another period of misunderstanding the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Rumours ruled the market and facts could not find a place in discussions. The situation aggravated in the wake of a disinformation campaign to malign CPEC and China-Pakistan relations.

The year started with negative reporting in the international and local media, and the year closed with another wave of negativity. Debt trap, slow pace of CPEC projects and rolling back of Chinese investment were the major allegations levelled to run the smear campaign.

The debt trap is a slogan which has been chanted for a long time. The purpose is to counter Chinese investment flow to Pakistan. First, it was used in Sri Lanka through a deliberate campaign. The purpose was to create fear among countries where China was planning to inject capital.

No doubt, Sri Lanka is going through a debt crisis. However, the Chinese investment has nothing to do with the crisis.

Dushni Weerakoon of Sri Lanka’s Institute of Policy Studies and Sisira Jayasuriya, a professor of economics at Monash University, highlighted that China’s share in the national debt was only 10%. Furthermore, over 60% of this 10% loan is at the concessionary rate of 2%. It is only a myth that Sri Lanka has to cede Hambantota Port to China.

The same strategy has been adopted to malign CPEC without paying any heed to data or analysis on CPEC investment. Such disinformation starts with reports of debt crisis in Pakistan and its weak foreign currency reserves. It is used to stir fear among people.

Then such conspiracy theories jump directly to CPEC without highlighting the debt contribution from Paris Club ($10.924 billion), International Monetary Fund ($7.68 billion), bilateral donors ($24.352 billion), multilateral donors ($39.392 billion) and international bonds ($5.3 billion).

They manipulate data in such a way that puts all the blame on CPEC, though the contribution of CPEC-related investment is only 5.6%, which they intentionally ignore.

The same reports are highlighted and propagated through different media channels. Innocent minds of Pakistanis are trapped through these reports. Common people cannot understand the economic terminologies and the complicated debt data.

Even the ruling elite, decision-makers and businessmen cannot comprehend difficult statistics. Hence, they easily become victim of the smear campaign.

Second, the rolling back of Chinese investment is another false slogan which has been adopted in recent times. The disinformation campaign has accelerated following the Covid-19 outbreak.

The pandemic and its impact on the global economy and investment have provided a greater opportunity to manipulate data. Thus, it is necessary to understand the global dynamics before discussing CPEC.

The World Bank has projected that the global economy will shrink 5.2% in 2020. UNCTAD has forecast that the global foreign direct investment (FDI) will take a 40% hit, which will push the FDI down to less than $1 trillion from $1.5 trillion. Moreover, it can further contract by 5-10% in 2021.


Special focus

Despite all these odds and challenges, China is not sitting back. While first half of 2020 saw some turbulence, later China recovered and accelerated its investment.

Pakistan being the host to CPEC, the flagship project of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), got special focus. China started enhancing investment in CPEC and non-CPEC projects.

Among these, China and Pakistan launched two big hydroelectric power projects costing $1.93 billion. It is a clean investment which will help Pakistan in many ways like cheap electricity, enhanced water storage capacity and availability of water for agriculture during lean periods.

Discussions on the ML-1 railway project are at advanced stages. China has also provided support through a currency swap arrangement.

Third, the pace of progress on projects is another subject of interest for the opponents of CPEC. A major reason behind this argument is the lack of evidence to prove fake news about debt trap and rolling back of CPEC investment.

However, the evidence suggests otherwise. CPEC is going on at a good pace, rather the project has expanded over the past two years. The setting up of CPEC Authority gave a fresh impetus to the project with expansion in the areas of cooperation.

In 2020, when the entire world was under the grip of the deadly pandemic and economic activities came to a standstill, Pakistan and China joined hands to maintain the pace of work and expand cooperation.

The M-4 motorway project was completed during that period. CPEC helped Pakistan to keep 40,000 of its workers engaged. Gwadar Port started functioning as a transit trade facility. The groundbreaking of Allama Iqbal Special Economic Zone (SEZ) was performed and preparation for the groundbreaking of Rashakai SEZ has been finalised.

Pakistan and China also expanded cooperation under CPEC. First, social development was added to the basket and China committed more than $1 billion. The programme will focus on skills development, healthcare, education and job creation.

In 2020, two memorandums of understanding (MoUs) were signed in the fields of agriculture and science and technology. Besides, China offered to donate a date processing plant for Balochistan. The plant will play an important role in creating livelihood opportunities for the local people and enhancing export earnings for Pakistan.

Hence, the campaign against CPEC is unjustified and does not have any sound footing. It is suggested that the government should take immediate steps to improve communication about CPEC benefits for poverty reduction, industrialisation and economic transformation.

The CPEC Authority is already working on it and it has improved the communication tremendously but there is a need to further accelerate the process.

Lastly, all players in the power structure should immediately stop making CPEC a subject of point scoring. It is hurting the project and interest of the country.

The writer is a political economist


Published in The Express Tribune, January 4th, 2021.
 

China has become the largest country to import Pakistani goods.



According to a report published in China's Economic Net, China has increased the capacity of Pakistani market, resulting in a rise in exports.

Pakistan exports to China are $ 2.357 billion in December 2020 The count reached 18.3 % more than $ 1.993 billion in December 2019 Chinese scholar Prof. Cheng Zeng has said that the progress is a good omen for the stability of the Pakistani economy and it is provincial and provincial. This is the result of the intelligent policies of federal governments
 
January 05, 2021

Under an initiative of the federal government, 50 new fire tenders and two water bowsers have reached Karachi port from China which will need two days to be unloaded from the vessel, on Tuesday.

As many as 50 fire tenders and two water tankers have reached Karachi port today under an initiative from the federal government.

The firefighting vehicles have been purchased with the cost of Rs1.4 billion under the financial package announced by the federal government for the metropolis.

According to the sources Prime Minister Imran Khan is likely to visit Karachi in mid-January. The firefighting vehicles will be handed over to the Sindh government during the expected visit of the premier in Karachi.

Moreover, the inclusion of new fire brigade vehicles will improve the capacity of firefighting services in the metropolis as only 14 fire tenders in Karachi are operational out of 44 vehicles.
Earlier on January 2, the Sindh Infrastructure and Development Company Limited (SIDCL) had reportedly received a letter from the Karachi port authorities, confirming the arrival of the vessel carrying 50 fire tenders and two water tankers.

It is pertinent to mention here that state-of-the-art firefighting vehicles were provided by a Chinese company and are different from traditional fire tenders that can only spray water.
A demonstration of vehicle functions was conducted during the send-off ceremony, showing a high-pressure water gun extinguishing the fire.

The new fire truck products will greatly improve the Karachi city government’s fire-fighting emergency rescue level and provide strong technological support for the safety of the citizens.
 
Chinese company to invest, set up new industrial unit in Punjab

By Gwadar Pro
Jan 6, 2021

Shafqat Ali

Lahore, January 6: Chinese Company Oreal Ceramics has shown interest in investing in the tiles industry in Bhalwal Industrial Estate and has sought 50-acre land to set up a new industrial unit, said an official statement issued here on Tuesday evening.

The investment can increase the production capacity if additional supply of electricity and gas is provided, said the statement.

Representative of Chinese Company Oreal Ceramics Wo Jianbin called on Punjab Provincial Minister for Industries and Trade Mian Aslam Iqbal and discussed matters relating to investment. Director Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT) Suhail Saleem was also present.

The minister welcomed the new investment plans and reiterated that promotion of investment is the top priority of the government.

The government will provide every possible facility to maximise investment in the province, he said and directed the relevant officials to provide every possible facility to the Chinese company for setting up a new industrial unit.

The new investments help in poverty alleviation and overcoming the chronic issue of unemployment in the province, said the minister.
 
China’s construction giant CCECC shares construction experience with Pak

By China Economic Net
Jan 5, 2021

BEIJING, Jan. 5 (China Economic Net) - “The natural, geographical and cultural environments of China and Pakistan are very different from each other, so during construction, we worked out measures to adapt to local conditions and shared our construction experience with our Pakistani friends,” noted Dong Zhihong, deputy general manager of Asia Pacific Division, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), while taking an interview with China Economic Net.

Take the mountainous areas in Pakistan as an example. “It is difficult to conduct construction work there as the geological conditions are not that favorable.” Therefore, “blasting, protection, and support of high slope, tunneling and excavation technologies are applied to the construction project site after certain improvement and optimization,” Mr. Dong added.

As per Dong, a joint venture led by CCECC signed a construction contract for the upgrade and renovation of the main runway 18L-36R of Allama Iqbal International Airport (AIIAP) with Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) last August.

At present, the commencement order was issued by the employer, and work including the take over of the site, the construction of temporary camps for administration office and dormitory, the construction of temporary facilities (batch plant, canteen), and the removal of existing avionics facilities on the runway was completed. Also, a mobilization meeting held last November had CCECC employees ready for 24-hour non-stop day and night construction, with workers running on two shifts and machines running to ensure quality and quantity of timely completion.

“The ratio of local employees on site is very high, and the ratio of Chinese and Pakistani employees is about 1:5 to 1:10 according to different types of work, which creates a lot of employment for the locals,” Dong further mentioned.

“CCECC also has an edge in water supply and rail transportation, so we are also looking for good investment opportunities in Pakistan in days to come, such as highways, water supply plants, power plants, and so on,” noted Mr. Dong.

CCECC Pakistan Branch was officially established in 2015 and has been committed to strengthening the construction of CPEC. It has undertaken the implementation of five projects worth about ¥600 million, focusing on infrastructures like roads and airport runways.

As one of the pioneering Chinese companies entering the international market, CCECC is now developed into a large-scale state-owned enterprise with Chinese National Super Grade Qualification for railway project engineering and has been listed among the world’s top 225 International contractors for many years in a row.
 
Chinese vaccine maker CanSino Biologics has offered 20 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine to Pakistan, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

The vaccine maker will be giving Pakistan preferential access and pricing, Bloomberg quoted Hasan Abbas Zaheer, technical adviser at AJM Pharma Pvt.

It has already applied with Pakistan’s drug regulator (Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan) to get approval.

The company is also close to releasing the results of its vaccine’s final-stage clinical trials that were being conducted in Pakistan, Russia, Mexico, and Chile.

There might be a 25% decrease in procurement costs as the company claims it will fill vaccine vials in Pakistan.

Zaheer said, “We need to keep in mind that this coronavirus vaccine is a very scarce commodity, highly in demand, and you know the other countries many months ago started the advance booking, we also need to do the same, we are already late on that.”

“Once Pakistan does a booking, we will be in a position to know the delivery. I am sure the delivery will be much before other manufacturers,” he added.

The development comes a day after Pakistan government announced that China would offer Pakistan 500,000 doses of its COVID-19 vaccines by January 31.

CanSino has also agreed to supply 35 million doses to Mexico while Malaysia is in talks to get 3.5 million shots.
 
Chinese vaccine maker CanSino Biologics has offered 20 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine to Pakistan, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

The vaccine maker will be giving Pakistan preferential access and pricing, Bloomberg quoted Hasan Abbas Zaheer, technical adviser at AJM Pharma Pvt.

It has already applied with Pakistan’s drug regulator (Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan) to get approval.

The company is also close to releasing the results of its vaccine’s final-stage clinical trials that were being conducted in Pakistan, Russia, Mexico, and Chile.

There might be a 25% decrease in procurement costs as the company claims it will fill vaccine vials in Pakistan.

Zaheer said, “We need to keep in mind that this coronavirus vaccine is a very scarce commodity, highly in demand, and you know the other countries many months ago started the advance booking, we also need to do the same, we are already late on that.”

“Once Pakistan does a booking, we will be in a position to know the delivery. I am sure the delivery will be much before other manufacturers,” he added.

The development comes a day after Pakistan government announced that China would offer Pakistan 500,000 doses of its COVID-19 vaccines by January 31.

CanSino has also agreed to supply 35 million doses to Mexico while Malaysia is in talks to get 3.5 million shots.
excellent news. but we just don't know how effective any of these vaccines are, regardless of which company, Chinese or american, they came from. It is of the UTMOST importance that everyone maintains face-masking, hand-sanitizing and social-distancing for the near foreseeable future, and I mean at least for the next couple of years.
 
Consul General Libijian handover China Aid to Gwadar Police Station, 40 motorcycles, 10 mobile sentry boxes and 10 laptops.

© Voice of Gwadar


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