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Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan decline by over 25pc
International Desk
16 Jan 2022, 20:45
Photo: Collected
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief collector (customs) Ahmad Raza Khan has revealed that the Pak-Afghan trade’s volume had considerably plummeted since Kabul fell to the Taliban in August last year.
Talking to reporters during a visit to Torkham, Mr Ahmad said Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan had declined by more than 25 per cent during the last six months due to a ‘fragile economic situation’ in Afghanistan due to the international sanctions imposed after the Taliban’s Kabul takeover.
He said that the weak Afghan economy had decreased the residents’ purchasing buying power, which badly hit trade between the two neighbouring countries.
The official said that the State Bank of Pakistan had introduced a new policy of exports to Afghanistan on Dec 13 requiring Afghan traders to show US dollars along with their passports at the time of entry to Pakistan to acquire Form-E for buying and importing Pakistani goods to Afghanistan.
He said that the new SBP trade policy was meant to lure Afghan traders to bring American dollars to Pakistan and thus, increasing Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves to improve its economy.
Mr Ahmad said that with the Afghan banking system nearly on the verge of collapse and their foreign exchange reserves almost dried up, the new trade policy failed to give the much-needed impetus to the bilateral trade.
He, however, said that the government was aware of the situation and was in the process of rectifying the issues caused by the policy.
Torkham Custom Clearing Agents Association, Khyber Chamber of Commerce, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Commercial Exporters and Exporters, and Cargo Transport Association boycotted the clearance of commercial goods bound for Afghanistan for the third consecutive day on Friday against the State Bank of Pakistan’s new export policy.
Officials at Torkham said that the boycott of goods clearance had cost the country’s exchequer millions of rupees in the last three days.
The protesting traders and transporters said that they won’t submit to the new policy as no formal banking was operational in Afghanistan after the Taliban came to power in Aug last year.
They demanded of the federal government to allow them to do business with Afghanistan in Pakistani currency to restore bilateral trade.
Source: THE DAWN
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Saudi Arabia's thriving startup scene driven by women
A flourishing entrepreneur scene has transformed the Saudi business world. Startups contribute to the nation's branding efforts and aim to tackle unemployment, as it aims to move away from a dependence on oil revenue.
It's now almost impossible to imagine the Saudi economy without the thriving startup scene and its female entrepreneurs.
Less than a decade ago, the situation was largely different.
"There was literally no ecosystem for startup companies," Maha Shirah, one of the first female Saudi entrepreneurs in Riyadh, told DW.
For women, starting a business was particularly tough.
In 2014, when Shirah opened the country's first workspace for women, laws still restricted the participation of women in many industries.
Ten years on, the Saudi Ministry of Commerce haspublished a comprehensive list of workspaces for women, and the local startup landscape is not only thriving but is driven by women across all industries.
"When it comes to laws affecting women's decisions to work, laws affecting women's pay, constraints on women starting and running a business, and laws affecting the size of a woman's pension, Saudi Arabia gets a perfect score of 100," the recent World Bank report Women, Business and the Law 2024 concluded.
The 2021-2022 Women's Report for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also stated that 95% of Saudi women listed entrepreneur as a good career choice.
Although current statistics on female labor force participation and female entrepreneurs have yet to be published, the trend is apparent.
"Between 2017 and 2021, the Saudi female labor force participation rate doubled from 17.4% to 35.6%, comfortably exceeding the 'Vision 2030' target of raising it to 30%," Tim Callen, a visiting fellow at the Washington-based think tank Arab Gulf States Institute, wrote in January 2024.
There is no doubt that Vision 2030 — a socioeconomic set of reforms introduced in January 2016 by the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — has been the key driver of this process.
Part and parcel of the overhaul is the inclusion of women in the workforce, tackling the pressing issue of unemployment, pushing for diversification from oil revenues and opening the country for tourists.
Structuring the Saudi startup scene
"I remember well that before 2017, very few courses at school or university focused on startups or entrepreneurship at all," said Shirah.
She also recalled that starting a business was only an option for rich people, for everyone else, it "was considered a stigma."
Due to the governmental initiatives, however, nowadays "everybody with a solid idea can become an entrepreneur, obviously including women," she said.
Over time, the government has even become one of the most active investors in its local startup scene.
This March's tech summit Leap24, for example, recorded a staggering $11.9 billion investmentby the Saudi Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.
In Shirah's view, the Saudi startup scene is doing quite well already and growing still. She believes that from now on, more startup accelerators and incubators will be needed.
Startup incubators support early-stage startups in helping them to develop their idea into a business. Accelerators support already existing businesses with resources and mentorship.
Incubators, accelerators are the next step
For Marriam Mossalli, a Saudi entrepreneur who has been advocating for female empowerment through her nonprofit organization Under The Abaya for years, advising startups has become a new endeavor. (An abaya is a robe-like dress that covers the entire body except for head, hands and feet.)
In 2024, Mossalli launched C-Suite Advisory, an investment and business consultancy. The term C-Suite refers to a company's leadership positions like CEO (chief executive officer) and COO (chief operating officer). She also invested in several female-run startups.
"As a female entrepreneur myself, I know firsthand the challenges presented to us," she told DW, adding that for her "it was time to put my money where my mouth is."
One of the startups Mossalli advises is Sirene, a third-party e-commerce luxury fashion retailing company that was recently founded by the Saudi entrepreneur Basma Barzangi.
"I am still at the pre-seed phase and actively seek investors, so I do find myself concerned about the future," Barzangi told DW.
However, as an entrepreneur she said she has learned to embrace setbacks "as part of the journey."
"It's important to remember that even failure is just a stepping stone to success," she said.
Her view exemplifies change, too.
"For decades, the concept of failure was frowned upon in Saudi Arabia," Sebastian Sons, senior researcher with the German Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient, told DW.
"This has been changing as many young people recognize that failure can be part of their business experience and they are now willing to take this risk," he said.
Startups as a strategy toward nation branding
Fostering a lively startup scene serves its reasons, said Sons, not only for the society but also for Saudi Arabia's government.
"The focus is on economic diversification as the state is no longer able to absorb many employees in the public sector, and the private sector needs to be strengthened," he said. "The second reason is the external and internal impact of supporting startups."
On the one hand, the government signals they are promoting personal initiative via startups as part of nation branding, he said.
Son said there is another component as well: "It is also part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's power consolidation in the country."
But the situation for women rights in Saudi Arabia isn't perfect, just because more women have the opportunity to become entrepreneurs.
According to the Human Rights Watch World Report 2024, "further legal reforms remain severely undermined by widespread repression under de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and a number of women's rights defenders, including Loujain al-Hathloul, remain banned from travel and under suspended prison sentences."
Iceland: Volcano erupts for fourth time in 3 months
Iceland, located between the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates, sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic.
A volcano in Iceland erupted Saturday evening for the fourth time in three months, spewing bright orange streams of lava into the night sky.
According to Iceland's Meteorological Office, the eruption created a fissure stretching approximately 3 kilometers (almost 2 miles) long between Stóra-Skógfell and Hagafell mountains on the Reykjanes Peninsula.
Residents evacuated
Authorities had been monitoring the situation closely for weeks, as signs of accumulating magma —semi-molten rock — beneath the surface pointed to an impending eruption.
Hundreds of people were evacuated from the Blue Lagoon thermal spa, one of Iceland's top tourist attractions, when the eruption began, national broadcaster RUV said.
There were no reports of flight disruptions at nearby Keflavik, Iceland's main airport.
The eruption site is a few kilometers northeast of Grindavik, a coastal town of 3,800 people about 50 kilometers (30 miles) southwest of Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, that was evacuated before the initial eruption in December.
A few residents who had returned to their homes were evacuated again Saturday.
Grindavik was evacuated in November when the Svartsengi volcanic system awakened after almost 800 years with a series of earthquakes that opened large cracks in the ground north of the town.
The volcano eventually erupted on December 18, sending lava flowing away from Grindavik. A second eruption that began on January 14 sent lava toward the town.
Both eruptions lasted only a matter of days. A third eruption began February 8, but petered out within hours.
Sitting above a volcanic hotspot
Iceland, located between the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates, sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic.
It sees regular eruptions and is highly experienced at dealing with them.
The country has around 30 active volcanoes, making it a popular destination for volcano tourism.
The most disruptive in recent times was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which spewed huge clouds of ash into the atmosphere and led to widespread airspace closures over Europe.
New resolution on Tibet introduced in the US House
A new resolution has been introduced in the United States House of Representatives titled “Recognizing the 65th anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising Day of March 10, 1959, and condemning human rights violations related to the hydropower dam construction project in Derge”. The resolution that condemns China’s mass arrest of peaceful Tibetan protestors and reaffirms the support for Tibetan self-determination was introduced by Representatives Jim McGovern, D-Massachusetts, and Young Kim, R-California, on Monday, March 11.
The resolution acknowledges the historical events surrounding the Tibetan Uprising Day, particularly the efforts of Tibetan people who formed a human barricade around the Dalai Lama’s residence to protect him from Chinese troops in 1959. Additionally, it acknowledges the recent protests in Derge County, eastern Tibet, against a hydropower dam project that would displace residents and destroy Buddhist monasteries.
Rep. McGovern said: “It’s been 65 years since His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama was forced to flee as the People’s Republic of China forcibly took control of Tibet. Every day since, the Tibetan people have been defending their human rights and fighting for their self-determination. The PRC must comply with its laws and its international human rights obligations, and stop oppressing Tibetans.”
Rep. Kim said: “The Tibetan people have suffered the Chinese Communist Party’s oppression and control for 70 years, and the CCP shows no signs of slowing down until it has erased Tibetan culture. The freedom-loving people of Tibet deserve our support. I’m proud to join Rep. McGovern in a bipartisan call to stand with the Tibetan people and urge the Biden administration to enforce laws in place to hold the CCP accountable.”
The resolution reaffirms the House’s support for Tibetan human rights and condemns China’s efforts to erase Tibetan cultural identity, particularly by condemning projects like the hydropower dam project in Derge. It demands the immediate release of protestors and prisoners of conscience, along with apologies and redress for rights violations.
Additionally, it calls on the Biden administration to urge China to halt the dam project and respect Tibetan input into development projects.
This resolution adds to previous Congressional actions supporting Tibet, including the passage of the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act of 2018 and the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2020. The House also recently passed the Resolve Tibet Act, aimed at pushing China to negotiate peacefully with Tibetan leaders to resolve the conflict in Tibet.
Source: Phayul
Big Tech’s trouble in China: New ‘work secrets’ law could force tough choices
For years, the national and cyber security communities have warned technology companies like Microsoft, Amazon and Oracle that escalating tensions between the United States and China would ultimately make them choose between one of their largest customers, the U.S. government, and access to the state-controlled Chinese market. U.S. companies have long had to balance their values with China’s authoritarian demands, such as extreme censorship of search engines. That was just the tip of the iceberg.
Now, a revision to China’s state secrets law that takes effect in May could very well force the issue.
The law will require business entities in China to identify and disclose to the government “work secrets,” or non-classified information that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) deems relevant to its national security. The revision is purposely ambiguous as to what qualifies, allowing China to force U.S. tech firms (and, of course, other U.S. companies operating in China) to turn over proprietary information that could be used to target the U.S. government or impact the data security of Americans writ large. This becomes a difficult but binary choice for U.S. tech companies that have invested billions of dollars to build up their presence in China. If U.S. tech companies refuse to comply, they risk losing access to the vast Chinese market. If they do comply, they risk threatening U.S. national security.
To eliminate that risk, the Biden administration and Congress should — at a minimum — consider barring technology companies that comply with the new rule from pursuing new government contracts.
Technology companies like Microsoft, Amazon and Oracle are deeply embedded in the U.S. government and enjoy significant advantages thanks to their incumbency in government contracts. Microsoft and Oracle, for example, face no competition for nearly a quarter of their federal contracts. In many cases, secondary IT providers “compete” for the government’s business but use the same underlying systems, ensuring that no matter which bidder is selected, firms like Microsoft and Oracle always win.
These companies also have significant operations in China and large networks of affiliates that work with researchers and universities with direct ties to the Chinese government and military.
These operations risk compromise to America’s national security interests today: Chinese familiarity with and access to information about operating systems that are at the core of our defense enterprise is, manifestly, a source of vulnerability. As President Xi Jinping has consolidated power, the CCP has imposed increasingly strict rules on foreign businesses operating in China and mandated their compliance to maintain market access.
For U.S. technology companies, that has meant requirements that force them to provide the state advance notice of their cybersecurity vulnerabilities, allowing state-affiliated hackers to exploit zero-day flaws before a patch is released. It has also meant compliance with a National Cybersecurity Law that opens many of the products they offer in the United States — including cybersecurity tools sold to the U.S. government — to intrusion by state-affiliated hackers. Microsoft itself has admitted that compliance with these rules has directly led to attacks against governments worldwide.
That threat risk looms larger with the new requirements. U.S. technology companies that conduct research and development in China will now also be required to abide by the new “work secrets” rule if they want to continue to reap the rewards of the Chinese market or use China-based talent to develop products and features banned in China but used globally, including in the United States.
If the past is prologue, these companies will choose to comply. China’s hacking and espionage program is already robust, and top U.S. intelligence officials have voiced their concern about China’s ability to launch a significant cyberattack against U.S. critical infrastructure. Increasing the flow of data from the U.S. government’s largest and most important technology partners directly to the CCP exponentially increases that risk.
To mitigate this, the Biden administration and Congress must step in — the same way they have in recent weeks to improve U.S. port cybersecurity — to stop Americans’ personal data from being sold to foreign adversaries like China and address the threat that Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers pose to national security.
Any action needs to reflect the reality that it is increasingly becoming unfeasible for the companies trusted with U.S. national security contracts to maintain significant operations in China. Lawmakers should adopt new measures to transition to a procurement system that would disqualify any company that complies with China’s state-mandated disclosures from consideration for future government contracts.
Requiring companies to choose between the United States and China will ensure the technology partners the U.S. government chooses share its national security priorities, helping make the tools it relies on safer and more secure.
Paul Rosenzweig is the founder of Red Branch Consulting, a homeland security and cybersecurity consulting firm, and a senior adviser to The Chertoff Group. He previously served as deputy assistant secretary for policy at the Department of Homeland Security and is currently a professorial lecturer in law at George Washington University and a senior fellow in the Tech, Law & Security Program at the American University, Washington College of Law.
Source: The Hill
Decoding China: The race to electric vehicle dominance
China's tech giants, Xiaomi and Huawei, are making significant strides in the EV sector. These companies are combining data and artificial intelligence to redefine the future of mobility.
Chinese electronics manufacturer Xiaomi plans to deliver its first electric vehicle in China on March 28, three years after the company first pitched its idea for a battery-powered sports car.
Now, premium car manufacturers in the US and Germany will have to deal with another competitor from the Far East.
The new vehicle is called the SU7, with SU standing for "speed ultra." The car needs just 2.78 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 100 kph (0-60 mph). The top speed is 265 kph.
The maximum range with a fully charged battery is specified by the manufacturer as 800 kilometers (500 miles). The base price of the SU7 is around €33,000 ($36,000), making the SU7's comparable with a Tesla model 3, and only around a third of the price of Porsche's Taycan.
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun has his sight set on competitors from the US and Germany. "We don't want compromise or mediocrity," Lei said. "We want to build a dream car that stands up to Tesla and Porsche."
From smartphones to cars
China has long been the world's largest manufacturer of electric cars. E-mobility would be unimaginable without innovations from Chinese companies, this includes many electronics companies that were not originally focused on the automotive industry.
Xiaomi mainly produces so-called intelligent household appliances with web functions, such as door sensors or rice cookers that send notifications to one's cell phone when the rice is ready.
In Europe, Xiaomi is primarily known for its smartphones, just like the other telecommunications supplier Huawei, which has been launching its e-SUVs under the name AITO in China since 2021.
Electronics companies trying to cross over into car making is not limited to China. The Californian company Apple also had the idea of producing cars 14 years ago. However, at the end of February 2024, the iPhone manufacturer from Cupertino announced that the "Apple Car" project had finally been discontinued. The company is said to have invested a total of $10 billion.
China's dominant automobile market
China is the largest and fastest growing car market in the world. Germany's major car manufacturers sold around one in three cars worldwide in 2023. But their market position is now being challenged by domestic e-car manufacturers.
"China leads the global supply chain for lithium-ion batteries," said Bernd Diepenseifen, partner at the consulting firm KPMG.
In terms of battery production, industrial innovation and sales, China is clearly number one on the scale of competitiveness. "Asian suppliers have a dominant position here, at least for the time being," he added. And for German car makers, things are not moving in the right direction.
"The production of raw materials is certainly not a field in which German suppliers are sensibly looking for opportunities, nor is battery production," said Diepenseifen.
The high standards China's car makers are aiming for became even more clear at the Geneva International Motor Show in February.
Not a single car manufacturer from Germany was present, but there were plenty from China. Exhibition vehicles demonstrated a new generation of connected cars, with entertainment packages integrating audio and video streaming services, and navigation that indicates with a countdown when the next traffic light turns green.
China builds a new generation of cars
China's automobile industry today is looking at cars more than as a mere means of transportation. Cars are more than just an engine plus gearbox, and e-mobility is not just a chassis with a socket.
China is thinking ahead with emphasis on automated driving and artificial intelligence, an environmentally friendly transportation concept and technological leadership in industrial production.
This is why electronics and telecommunications giants like Huawei and Xiaomi are positioning themselves in this competitive market.
"Currently, cars are 'mobile data centers'," said Xiaomi boss Lei. "The automotive industry of the future will produce advanced and connected 'smart spaces'."
Chinese EV maker NIO has called its cars a "living room on wheels."
At the IAA 2023 motor show in Munich, Wan Gang, China's former research minister, enthused that electric cars could be used to store energy in the power grid when charging and discharging.
A data-driven future
"For production and the vehicle of the future, 'smart' is the next big step," said Jürgen Unser, who was President of Audi China until January 2024. This includes smart cars, smart production and smart infrastructure.
Production will soon be controlled by data and artificial intelligence. "It is very important for our society, including in Germany, that we become much more open in the way we handle and use data," he added.
Compared to other countries, Chinese drivers are not sensitive to the collection of private data. By using data, the innovative digital industry is then able to develop algorithms for the application of artificial intelligence to develop tools in the future.
"Artificial intelligence will contribute to our progress and prosperity," Unser said. "We need to be fast, open and flexible." However, the data collected must also be exchanged in a regulated manner.
In 2018, the German government and China signed a joint declaration of intent for automated and connected driving.
According to the document, both countries want to create and develop "non-discriminatory multilateral standards and requirements for data access and storage, data transmission and IT security (cybersecurity) in the field of automated and connected driving and the associated infrastructure."
But the reality of sharing data across borders is far more complicated. According to the EU Commission, many EU companies are complaining about difficulties in using industrial data from their subsidiaries in China.
Foreign investors must operate their data centers in China which are usually decoupled from the database or cloud service of the parent company.
China's data and cyber security regulations are "a problem" for European industry, according to reports from Brussels. The transfer of data out of China requires state approval from the cyber supervisory authority CAC, which wants to check all exports of "important data."
The German government is also aware of the high hurdles. Federal Digital Minister Volker Wissing emphasized the need for free data transfer at the German-Chinese intergovernmental consultations in 2023.
The EU and China are currently negotiating uniform industry standards for information and communication technologies (ICT) in the interests of borderless data regulation. They are still looking for common ground.
China outlaws place names that fail to conform to its territorial claims
China has made it clear Mar 15 that geographical names in ethnic minority or foreign languages should reflect the country’s sovereign and extraterritorial claims when translated into Chinese characters. These would include names of islands in the South China Sea, places in India’s Arunachal Pradesh state, and the name of the occupied territory of Tibet.
For this purpose, the Ministry of Civil Affairs published on Mar 15, implementation measures addressing the management of geographical names, which detailed the requirements for translation of place names in ethnic minority or foreign languages into Chinese characters, reported China’s official globaltimes.cn Mar 16.
China recently made it clear that the Chinese name “Xizang” should be used in place of “Tibet” or “Tibet Autonomous Region” to refer to “Xizang Autonomous Region”, which is roughly only the western half of Tibet proper. It thereby made it clear that “Tibet” proper, which includes the Qinghai province and other territories merged with its Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces as well, no longer exists and should not be used in official documents as a placename.
Set to take effect from May 1, 2024, the implementation measures have stipulated in Article 13 that “place name in foreign language that may harm China’s territorial claims and sovereignty rights shall not be directly quoted or translated without authorization.”
The report cited the implementation measures as saying translation of place names in foreign languages or minority languages should comply with standards formulated by related organs of the State Council, which is China’s cabinet. The standard translations are or will be made public through notices, the national database for geographical names and official publications on geographical names.
The report noted that the State Council had issued a revised regulation on place names in Apr 2022, which was applicable to naming, renaming, usage, cultural protection and other management on geographical names within Chinese territories.
In this connection, Zhi Zhenfeng, a research fellow with the Institute of Law at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, has said that as China still has disputes over some territories with certain neighbouring countries, the use of geographical names of places in disputes directly relates to sovereign rights. Using the incorrect translation or non-standard translation could cause confusion and encroach China’s territorial integrity, he has sought to stress.
The report cited Chinese analysts as mentioning the example of maritime disputes in the South China Sea with countries like the Philippines. When referring to islands and reefs concerned, the use of standard translation is a firm declaration of sovereignty and transliteration of foreign names means concession of legal rights, they were cited as saying.
The report also noted that the Ministry of Civil Affairs had standardized the names of 11 places in Zangnan (the southern part of Southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region) in Chinese characters, Tibetan and pinyin in Apr 2023. Using standard place names helps raise awareness of Chinese territory, it cited Chinese “experts” as saying.
The report said the Apr 2023 issuance was the third list of standardized geographical names in “Zangnan” published by the ministry. It added that the first list of the standardized names of six places in “Zangnan” was released in 2017, while the second list of 15 places was issued in 2021.
Source: Tibetan Review
Rare hippo species born in Athens Zoo
The endangered pygmy hippopotamus' birth was "extremely important" fot the Athens zoo. Its name will be decided by a vote.
It was the first birth in 2024 for Athens' Attica Zoological Park that made conservationists extremely happy: an endangered and rare potamus is now part of a hippo family in Greece.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature listed pygmy hippos as an endangered species. About 2,000-2,5000 are estimated to live in the wild. Their natural habitats are swamps and rainforests in western Africa.
"Every captive birth of pygmy hippos is extremely important. We're very happy to see this baby grow into a healthy adult hippo, and hopefully one day reproduce," the zoo's wildlife veterinarian Noi Psaroudaki told Reuters news agency in a report published Wednesday.
Calf's name to be decided by vote
One of the reasons that breeding in captivity has been complicated is the lack of male animals. So, the reaction was accordingly when the zoo found out that the little one is a male hippo.
The calf was born on February 19 and currently weighs 7 kilograms (15.4 pounds). It has no name yet, as it still has to be decided by vote. The hippo is now joining his parents, Lizzie and Jamal, who are the only ones of their species in the zoo.
Baby pygmo hippo will remain with its mother for the next couple of months before it can explore the outdoors enclosure.
