WASHINGTON: The US is pulling out four of its powerful Patriot missile systems from Saudi Arabia, after determining the threat from Iran that sparked an arms buildup in the region last year had waned, a Defense Department official said Thursday. Two of the anti-missile batteries deployed following...

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...

WASHINGTON: The US is pulling out four of its powerful Patriot missile systems from Saudi Arabia, after determining the threat from Iran that sparked an arms buildup in the region last year had waned, a Defence Department official said late on Thursday.Two of the anti-missile batteries deployed...

NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal on Friday issued notices to South Korean company LG Polymers, Union Environment Ministry, Central Pollution Control Board and others regarding the Vizag gas leak incident.The NGT has directed LG Polymers, India, at whose plant the gas leakage occurred, to...

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday issued red-letter to 16 ministries over delay in implementation of the cabinet’s decisions.This is the second time the PM’s office has issued the red-letter, which is a warning and a sign of displeasure. Last year, secretaries of 27...

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday issued red-letter to 16 ministries over delay in implementation of the cabinet’s decisions.This is the second time the PM’s office has issued the red-letter, which is a warning and a sign of displeasure. Last year, secretaries of 27...

tNEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal on Friday issued notices to South Korean company LG Polymers, Union Environment Ministry, Central Pollution Control Board and others regarding the Vizag gas leak incident.The NGT has directed LG Polymers, India, at whose plant the gas leakage occurred, to...

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday issued red-letter to 16 ministries over delay in implementation of the cabinet’s decisions.This is the second time the PM’s office has issued the red-letter, which is a warning and a sign of displeasure. Last year, secretaries of 27...

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...

Investments in universal health coverage are investments in economic growth. They play a critical role in leveraging opportunities, anticipating challenges, and delivering the knowledge, expertise, and financing countries need to achieve universal health coverage.

Involuntary resettlement can improve the lives of the resettled while reducing poverty and delivering results for development projects

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.

A tax on migrating workers compensates the exporting country for loss of the human capital created by its education and skills development programs.

Governments in the region need to invest more in prevention and response to the long-term impacts of disaster displacement.

Complex, carefully managed financing structures can provide the funding needed for island states and others seeking to develop energy projects.

Châu Á và Thái Bình Dương chưa có được tiến độ cần thiết để đạt được các Mục tiêu Phát triển Bền vững nhưng vẫn còn một thập niên để bù lại thời gian đã mất.

Asia’s economies have generally maintained sound macroeconomic policies that can help the region withstand this latest challenge and emerge even stronger.

Governments in Asia and the Pacific must think about two things when restarting their economies: when to do it and how.

Hunger and malnutrition were an increasing problem worldwide before the pandemic. Restrictions imposed to curb disease spread have disrupted local and international food supply chains, making the problem even more urgent.

As the pandemic continues, the supply chains producing vital personal protective equipment are starting to fail, causing shortages. Countries and international organizations can fill these gaps by working together.

A forward-looking, regional approach is needed for countries in Central Asia to respond to the pandemic and prepare for future public health threats.

Trinidad and Tobago loves its "heights" -- and a skilful cyclist on a homemade bike that reaches 10-12 feet in height does not disappoint.

The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has proposed a penalty of threefold property tax on residential structures lacking the Occupancy Certificate (OC). As the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) plans to levy threefold property tax on residential structures lacking the Occupancy Certificates (OCs), it may affect as many as 90 percent of the buildings in the city. Tukaram Mundhe, Commissioner, NMC, avers that the occupancy certificate is mandatory as per the building byelaws stated under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning (MRTP) Act, 1966. Therefore, all the building owners should obtain OC to avoid penalties. Nagpur has around 3,000 buildings that were served notices under the MRTP Act, but penalties were not levied until […]

Few images conjure the 1930s Depression like people standing in soup lines while farmers dump food they can't sell. That is a tragedy Southeast Asia is fighting to avoid, though it is starting to happen in pockets around the world in the midst of COVID-19. Supply chain disruptions, driven by the pan...

Korea's exports of coronavirus test kits last month amounted to more than US$200 million, or eight times the month before, according to the Korea Customs Service on Thursday.They were exported to 103 countries.Brazil imported US$30 million worth of test kits, which is the biggest proportion of 13 pe...

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will keep Britain under a coronavirus lockdown until at least next month -- to the frustration of some in his Cabinet, who behind the scenes are arguing that Downing Street now needs to prioritize the economy, which is heading for its worst recession in 300 years.Cabinet...

Rawalpindi : Pakistan Post has distributed Rs21.5 billion to more than 6.5 lakh military pensioners and family pensioners in two weeks in the second phase of pension distribution to pensioners at their doorsteps, which is a unique service of its kind and such huge sums of money. Rawalpindi Circle...

Islamabad : It has been rather unfortunate that despite a huge relief package of Rs50 billion for Utility Stores Corporation and a cut in POL products by almost 31 rupees in a month by the federal government, its impact has not trickled down to the grassroots level, as the general public is still...

Islamabad : Iran, China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and the Philippines have the most cases of COVID-19 and related deaths in the Asia Pacific region.The COVID-19 situation of Asia Pacific was highlighted in the Second COVID-19 Situation Report Asia Pacific released by United Nations Population...

To better understand how ADB’s developing members are weathering the COVID-19 crisis, the Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department launched the ADB COVID-19 Policy Database.

Faridabad, February 3 The newly developed Industrial Model Township (IMT) at Ballabgarh will offer nearly 530 plots to industrialists in a couple of weeks. Welcoming the move, Ramnik Prabhakar, a member of the Manufacturers Association, Faridabad (MAF), said, “We have been demanding much smaller plots, preferably of the size ranging between 50 sq yards and 300 sq yards, so that a majority of the small units operating from non-industrial areas could be adjusted in a developed township.’’ He said over 5,000 small and medium industrial units were operating from the residential and unauthorised areas and the authorities had perhaps ignored the ground realties so far. He said the rates of […]

Over 50 flights are scheduled to return stranded Lebanese citizens in the third phase of citizen repatriation set to begin May 14, Middle East Airlines said in a statement Friday.

UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations called on governments, companies and billionaires on Thursday to contribute to a $6.7 billion fund for immediate needs in fighting the coronavirus pandemic in vulnerable countries, warning that a failure to help could lead to a hunger pandemic, famine, riots and more conflict.

UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock said that Covid-19 has now affected every country and almost every person on the planet. He said the UN’s initial $2 billion appeal unveiled March 25 was being increased because there is already evidence of incomes plummeting and jobs disappearing, food supplies falling and prices soaring, and children missing vaccinations and meals. He added that the peak of the pandemic isn’t expected to hit the worlds poorest countries for three to six months.

Lowcock said in a video briefing launching the new appeal that the poorest countries face a double whammy the health impact of Covid-19 and the impact of the global recession and the domestic measures taken to contain the virus.

We must be prepared for a rise in conflict, hunger, poverty and disease as economies contract, export earnings, remittances and tourism disappear, and health systems are put under strain, he warned. Lockdowns and economic recession may mean a hunger pandemic ahead for millions.

The executive director of the World Food Programme, David Beasley, said there are two keys to averting the possibility of 265 million people being on the brink of famine by the end of the year: providing money and keeping supply chains running smoothly.

The UN appeals to wealthy nations for funding all the time, he said, but the pandemic is a one-time phenomena, a catastrophe were hitting, so its not unreasonable to ask the wealthiest people and the wealthiest companies to give.

I don’t mean just a few million. I’m talking about hundreds of millions of dollars, billions, Beasley said.

He also urged action to address the breakdown of supply chains globally. Nations must ensure that we don’t have export-import bans, restrictions at borders, shutdown of ports, shutdown of distribution points, he said, saying that some countries have already imposed export bans that are having ripple effects on food supplies.

As an example, Beasley said that if young people in urban areas in Africa lose their jobs as a result of the economic impact of the pandemic, they don’t have bank accounts to fall back on. And if they don’t have food, you’re going to have protests, riots, unrest and destabilisation. Its going to cost the world a hundredfold more to react after the fact, he warned.

He said that if the world doesn’t respond with sufficient funding, it will be catastrophic.

Were facing famine of biblical proportions,” he said. We can avert famine if we act and we act now.

The UN’s initial $2 billion appeal has so far raised $1 billion, including a lot from Europe Germany, Britain, the European Commission with contributions also from Japan, Persian Gulf countries, Canada and others, Lowcock said.

The updated appeal adds nine vulnerable countries to the 54 nations covered in the initial appeal Benin, Djibouti, Liberia, Mozambique, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sierra Leone, Togo and Zimbabwe.

Lowcock said more countries are being monitored for possible addition to the list.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020

East Africa's "triple threat" — the coronavirus, locusts, and floods — are not mutually exclusive. In fact, each is inextricably linked.

ADB has approved a $346 million loan to India to help provide efficient and reliable power connection to rural agriculture customers in the state of Maharashtra.

ADB has provided several targeted interventions to support its developing member countries in combating the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic from its early stages. In support of ADB’s effort, the Government of Japan is...

The head of Libya’s U.N.-supported government Friday warned of an escalation in the battle for Tripoli after rockets struck near foreign embassies in the capital, drawing sharp condemnation from the European Union and United Nations.

ADB tripled the size of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic to $20 billion and approved measures to streamline its operations for quicker and more flexible delivery of assistance, says ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa.

To better understand how ADB’s developing members are weathering the COVID-19 crisis, the Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department launched the ADB COVID-19 Policy Database.

Rep. McSally Visits Microchip Executives to Discuss Semiconductor Supply Chain Resilience in the U.S. Amid Defense Industrial Base Report Findings

ADB projects in Nepal are strengthening the nation's electricity transmission system while improving people's lives at the grassroots level.

Approved project 50193-003 in India.

Tech startups rely on an array of financing sources, and venture capital is not a common source.