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Shortages of virus test materials 'critical': UN

SEIBERSDORF: Shortages of materials needed in tests for the novel coronavirus remain “critical”, according to the head of a UN lab, which is supplying countries with COVID-19 detection kits. In particular the chemical reagents for the tests are still in short supply, said Giovanni...




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Malawi court rejects president'sappeal against poll annulment

LILONGWE: Malawi´s top appeals court on Friday rejected President Peter Mutharika´s bid to scrap the annulment of controversial elections last May which he narrowly won, paving the way for a rerun in July. Mutharika had appealed a landmark decision by the Constitutional Court to...




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Human urine could help make concrete on moon

BERLIN: The European Space Agency said Friday that human urine could one day become a useful ingredient in making concrete to build on the moon.The agency said researchers in a recent study it sponsored found that urea, the main organic compound in urine, would make the mixture for a “lunar...




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Indian faces trial for spying on Sikhs and Kashmiris in Germany

FRANKFURT AM MAIN: An Indian national will stand trial in Germany accused of spying on Sikh and Kashmiri communities for New Delhi’s secret service, a court said on Friday.Federal prosecutors allege the suspect, identified as 54-year-old Balvir, has been working with the Indian foreign...




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Oceans may rise over a metre by 2100, five metres by 2300

PARIS: Oceans are likely to rise as much as 1.3 metres by 2100 if Earth’s surface warms another 3.5 degrees Celsius, scientists warned on Friday.By 2300, when ice sheets covering West Antarctica and Greenland will have shed trillions of tonnes in mass, sea levels could go up by more than...




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Warship evacuates Indians from Maldives

MALE, Maldives: India’s navy on Friday began evacuating from the Maldives around 750 of the hundreds of thousands of Indian nationals stranded worldwide because of coronavirus.The operation by two warships in Male forms part of an initial operation to repatriate almost 15,000 Indians from 12...




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Malawi court rejects president's appeal against poll annulment

LILONGWE, Malawi: Malawi’s top appeals court on Friday rejected President Peter Mutharika’s bid to scrap the annulment of controversial elections last May which he narrowly won, paving the way for a rerun in July.Mutharika had appealed a landmark decision by the Constitutional Court to...




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Drop in Covid-19 cases 'a must' for returning to normality

EDINBURGH: The number of cases of Covid-19 needs to come down “substantially” and consistently before there can be any return to normality, a disease expert has said.Professor Hugh Pennington said that while “we may be past the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, the number of...




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France seizes 440,000 face masks as it breaks up medical smuggling networks

French police have dismantled smuggling networks trying to take advantage of a rush to buy medical supplies including face masks to tackle the coronavirus epidemic, the interior minister said Friday.




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'Every parent's nightmare': Boy's death may have virus link

The death of a 5-year-old New York boy is challenging assumptions that children are less susceptible to COVID-19 complications, Gov.




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Madrid and Barcelona will not move to next stage of Spain’s lockdown exit

Madrid and Barcelona will not progress to the next phase of Spain's exit from one of Europe’s strictest lockdowns that will allow bars, restaurants and places of worship to reopen in some areas from Monday, the government announced.




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New outbreaks in Germany, SKorea underline risk of easing up

Fresh coronavirus outbreaks at slaughterhouses in Germany and new cases reported Saturday in South Korea linked to a man who had visited multiple nightclubs highlighted the challenges authorities face as they seek to open up their economies.




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Pakistanis crowd markets as virus lockdown eased

Pakistanis crowded markets Saturday after a nationwide coronavirus lockdown was eased, despite the country declaring its second highest daily infection toll.




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Senior PM Office member approaches Ombudsman against D-12 plot allotments to a selected few

ISLAMABAD: A senior member of the Prime Minister’s Office has approached the Federal Ombudsman over the ‘extreme injustice’ of out of turn allotment of second residential plots in the federal capital to a selected few in the bureaucracy in a non-transparent and unjust manner.The...




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Drugs import from India: Shahbaz demands probe into scandal of billions

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-N President and National Assembly opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif has demanded an in-depth investigation into the medicine scandal through a parliamentary committee.“Coming on the heels of sugar, wheat and IPPs scandals, the latest drug scandal indicates how...




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Arrest of Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman: Countrywide protest of media workers continues

RAWALPINDI/LAHORE/PESHAWAR: The workers of Jang, Geo and The News along with representatives of civil society and political workers continued countrywide protest on Friday against illegal arrest of Editor-in-Chief of Geo and Jang Group Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman and pledged that the protest will...




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Abnormal increase in asymptomatic cases, local infection

ISLAMABAD: Eight out of 10 coronavirus patients didn’t have symptoms but found positive only after they were tested, countrywide data obtained by The News has determined.Similarly, local transmission of pandemic has considerably increased as around nine in 10 patients have contracted virus...




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SBP's Refinance Scheme for Small Businesses fails to take off

ISLAMABAD: The State Bank of Pakistan’s Refinance Scheme for Small Businesses has so far failed to take off due to multiple reasons as the commercial banks are not designed and fully equipped to provide credit line to Small and Medium Enterprises .“The SBP’s Refinance Scheme for...




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Major, five soldiers martyred in Kech IED blast

RAWALPINDI: Six security forces personnel, including one officer, were martyred and another injured as an improvised explosive device hit their reconnaissance vehicle in Buleda near the Pakistan-Iran border, the military's media wing said in a statement released Friday.According to the...




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SBP's Refinance Scheme for Small Businesses fails to take off

ISLAMABAD: The State Bank of Pakistan’s Refinance Scheme for Small Businesses has so far failed to take off due to multiple reasons as the commercial banks are not designed and fully equipped to provide credit line to Small and Medium Enterprises .“The SBP’s Refinance Scheme for...




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Senior PM Office member approaches Ombudsman against D-12 plot allotments to a selected few

ISLAMABAD: A senior member of the Prime Minister’s Office has approached the Federal Ombudsman over the ‘extreme injustice’ of out of turn allotment of second residential plots in the federal capital to a selected few in the bureaucracy in a non-transparent and unjust manner.The...




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Arrest of Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman: Countrywide protest of media workers continues

RAWALPINDI/LAHORE/PESHAWAR: The workers of Jang, Geo and The News along with representatives of civil society and political workers continued countrywide protest on Friday against illegal arrest of Editor-in-Chief of Geo and Jang Group Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman and pledged that the protest will...




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Drugs import from India: Shahbaz demands probe into billion-rupee scandal

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-N President and National Assembly opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif has demanded an in-depth investigation into the medicine scandal through a parliamentary committee.“Coming on the heels of sugar, wheat and IPPs scandals, the latest drug scandal indicates how...




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Abnormal increase in asymptomatic cases, local infection

ISLAMABAD: Eight out of 10 coronavirus patients didn’t have symptoms but found positive only after they were tested, countrywide data obtained by The News has determined. Similarly, local transmission of pandemic has considerably increased as around nine in 10 patients have contracted virus...




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Major, 5 soldiers martyred in Kech IED blast

RAWALPINDI: Six security forces personnel, including one officer, were martyred and another injured as an improvised explosive device hit their reconnaissance vehicle in Buleda near the Pakistan-Iran border, the military's media wing said in a statement released Friday.According to the...




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Pakistan to make own ventilators in two months: Asad Umer

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reforms, and Special Initiatives Asad Umer Friday said Pakistan would be manufacturing its own ventilators in next two months. Talking in a private news channel programme, he said Pakistan had taken all possible measures to fight against the...




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Senior PM Office member approaches Ombudsman against D-12 plot allotments to a selected few

ISLAMABAD: A senior member of the Prime Minister’s Office has approached the Federal Ombudsman over the ‘extreme injustice’ of out of turn allotment of second residential plots in the federal capital to a selected few in the bureaucracy in a non-transparent and unjust manner. The...




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Drugs import from India: Shahbaz Sharif demands probe into billion-rupee scandal

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-N President and National Assembly opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif has demanded an in-depth investigation into the medicine scandal through a parliamentary committee. Sugar, wheat and IPPs scandals, the latest drug scandal indicates how powerful mafias within the...




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Major, five soldiers martyred in Kech IED blast

RAWALPINDI: Six security forces personnel, including one officer, were martyred and another injured as an improvised explosive device hit their reconnaissance vehicle in Buleda near the Pakistan-Iran border, the military's media wing said in a statement released Friday.According to the...




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State Bank's Refinance Scheme for small businesses fails to take off

ISLAMABAD: The State Bank of Pakistan’s Refinance Scheme for Small Businesses has so far failed to take off due to multiple reasons as the commercial banks are not designed and fully equipped to provide credit line to Small and Medium Enterprises .“The SBP’s RefinanceScheme for...




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Pakistan sincerely supports Afghan peace process: General Qamar Javed Bajwa

RAWALPINDI: US Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad Friday called on Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa here on Friday.During the meeting, issues of mutual interest and overall regional security situation, including Afghan reconciliation process, came under...




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Pandemic destroys US jobs as Germany urges unity

WASHINGTON: The coronavirus epidemic sent US jobless totals soaring to historic highs on Friday, increasing pressure on authorities to follow Europe in phasing out lockdown measures despite still climbing American death tolls.Germany, meanwhile, marked the anniversary of the end of World War II in...




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Officer among six martyred in Balochistan IED blast

RAWALPINDI: An officer and five other soldiers were martyred, while one was injured in an improvised explosive device blast in the Buleda area of Balochistan on Friday, the Inter-Services Public Relations said in a press release.According to ISPR, security forces conducted routine patrolling In...




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Indian faces trial for 'spying' on Sikhs, Kashmiris in Germany

FRANKFURT: An Indian national will stand trial in Germany accused of spying on Sikh and Kashmiri communities for New Delhi’s spy agency, a court said on Friday.Federal prosecutors allege the suspect, identified as 54-year-old Balvir, has been working with the Indian foreign intelligence...




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Artificial intelligence, and human education, needed to advance energy efficiency -- by Yongping Zhai (翟永平), Yoonah Lee, Dan Millison

To get energy efficiency programs back on track, governments need to focus on education, incentives and improved regulations, as well as artificial intelligence and machine learning.




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Taking ownership: Better data is needed on women’s assets in Asia -- by Kaushal Joshi, Mildred Addawe, Arturo Martinez

Collecting sex-disaggregated data on asset ownership is an important step in achieving gender equality and empowerment of women and girls in Asia and the Pacific.




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Here’s a surprising way to achieve most of the SDGs -- by Martin Lemoine

There is one sector that contributes up to a third of gross domestic product, and is an important source of foreign currency, in many of Asia’s developing countries. It could be deployed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.




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Get smart to avoid a global water crisis -- by Stephane Y. Bessadi

Technology is a critical aspect of improving the availability and accessibility of clean water around the world.




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Why it matters that one of the region’s biggest trade deals is being upgraded -- by Jayant Menon, Anna Cassandra Melendez

Important changes are underway for Southeast Asia’s relationship with its biggest trading partner, the People’s Republic of China.




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What makes a city livable? -- by Sonia Chand Sandhu, Jingmin Huang

Total asset management brings together all aspects of what it takes to make a city vibrant and livable.




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Inside the camps in Cox’s Bazar, lives are gradually being rebuilt -- by Manmohan Parkash

At Camp No 5, in Cox's Bazar, there are about 632,000 displaced people still living in terrible conditions. But an international humanitarian effort is helping people in the community in southern Bangladesh live a better life. 




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Data on climate change an effective weapon in fighting India’s coastal erosion -- by Rajesh Yadav

Effective and planned shoreline management would trigger activities for tourism, and support development of ocean and beach landscape, conserve biodiversity along with coastal people’s livelihood.




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For sale—cheap: farms, buildings, cinemas, kindergartens and more -- by Rafael Abbasov

State-owned enterprises, including power utilities, in many countries have collected a menagerie of assets unrelated to their core business. And they are selling cheap.




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Why I’m optimistic we can achieve SDG #1—ending poverty in all its forms, everywhere -- by Alessandra Heinemann

The graduation approach provides a sequenced intervention designed to overcome multiple barriers that prevent the extreme poor from breaking out of poverty.




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Pension extension: Bringing informal workers into the retirement social safety net -- by Sri Wening Handayani

Millions of Asia’s informal workers – such as vendors, day laborers, and others – are left out of national pension systems. Here’s what we can do to help them in their later years.




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Тогтвортой хөгжлийн зорилтуудыг хангах нэгэн гайхалтай боломж -- by Martin Lemoine

Ази тивийн хөгжиж буй улс орнуудын дотоодын нийт бүтээгдэхүүний гуравны нэг хүртэл хувийг бүрдүүлж, гадаад валютын нөөцийнх нь чухал эх үүсвэр болдог нэгэн салбар бий. Энэ салбарыг Тогтвортой Хөгжлийн Зорилтуудыг хангахад ашиглах бүрэн боломжтой. 




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Taking the quantum leap in international development -- by Arun Ramamurthy

Quantum computing could change the face of many international development programs, including those involving transport, financial services and health care.




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Getting it right on railways -- by Naoyuki Yoshino, Grant Stillman

Lining up rights-of-way for megaprojects, such as railways and highways, in crowded places is challenging but it can be done with an imaginative and respectful plan.




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Let’s make it easier for countries to trade -- by Utsav Kumar, Ben Shepherd

The World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement provides a roadmap for developing economies to increase trade while also increasing the benefits it provides to their citizens.




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Knowledge is everywhere. Here are four ways to make it easier to share. -- by Sonia Chand Sandhu

A wealth of knowledge – knowhow and wisdom – rests with the officials, professionals, practitioners and communities. The challenge is to unleash the untapped power of this information.