Change Of Govt In Islamabad Won’t Affect CPEC: ChinaChange Of Govt In Islamabad Won’t Affect CPEC: China
BEIJING: China said on Thursday development work on 19 of 50 projects related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was already under way.
“It will not be affected by a change in government in Islamabad,” a senior official of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs told a group of visiting Pakistani journalists at the foreign office.
“It makes no difference (to China) who comes in (government) and who goes out as both countries have brotherly relations. What matters more is the timely completion of these projects, which we are closely watching. Since the CPEC is a flagship programme of the One Belt One Road (OBOR) project, it is very much important for us and we are keen on its timely completion. We also want Pakistan to seize this opportunity. It must not lose it,” he said.
Asian Affairs Department’s Deputy Division Director Liu Pengfei said China wants to complete the CPEC at the earliest because the initiative is important for the people of both countries.
“At the moment, we are satisfied with the pace of CPEC projects. But they will pick up further speed once the infrastructure situation improves in Pakistan,” he said, adding that Punjab will get more benefit along with other provinces from this project.
As for criticism of the CPEC by foreign and local parties, Mr Liu said, “We are not concerned about voices — foreign or local — against the CPEC. This project will benefit the people of both countries. We have to ensure its timely completion come what may. We want to let everyone know that China is a brother of Pakistan and stands by it.”
The United States alleged last month that the CPEC worth $56 billion passed through disputed territory. Its allegation was in reference to Pakistan’s northern areas, which India claims are part of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir territory. “The OBOR also goes through the disputed territory, and I think that in itself shows the vulnerability of trying to establish that sort of a dictate,” US Secretary of Defence James Mattis had alleged.
Mr Liu said, “The CPEC is not passing through any disputed territory in Pakistan.” He said Pakistan and India should resolve the Kashmir issue through peaceful dialogue.
Multi Billion Dollar CPEC To Benefit China More Than Pakistan: Report
The multi billion-dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPECBSE -4.45 %), which is part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’, will benefit China more than Pakistan due to lack of Pakistani input in the project.
The lack of Pakistani input into the CPEC, which the government said would drive economic growth to a targeted 6 per cent this financial year, adds to concerns that its benefits might not be as widely distributed as initially thought, the South Morning China Post reported, adding that it runs the risk that Islamabad will be left paying interest on loans to Chinese banks way into the future.
According to the news report, Chinese banks are keenly waiting to get their share of the pie, holding more than $20 billion for potential financing, much of it has already been filled by the Chinese, with Pakistani lenders getting little look in.
“As of now around $6 billion to $7 billion worth of projects are likely going on. Out of that, 10 per cent, or around 50 billion rupees ($470 million), can be local financing,” the South Morning China Post quoted Saad Hashemy, research director at Karachi brokerage Topline Securities, as saying.
“It seems the lion’s share of CPEC financing will come from China itself,” Bilal Khan, a senior economist at Standard Chartered, said.
The Thar coal mine worth $3.5 billion, which is expected to generate 1.3 gigawatts of electricity, is one of the most expensive energy projects.
China will also spend $5.5 billion for a significant upgrade of Pakistan’s rail system.
Meanwhile, local lenders, both Islamic and conventional, are keen to deploy funds after parking much of their advances in government securities, holding 82 per cent of the total 9.26 trillion rupees of local securities, the report said.
Pakistan’s banks will have minimal opportunities for direct financing in CPEC projects as the private sector at the government level is not so much involved in the project.
When the CPEC was announced few years back, it was anticipated that the project would mostly be funded with Chinese money as Pakistan was not in a position to deploy the necessary capital after taking an International Monetary Fund bailout in 2013.
China Development Bank is providing $7.9 billion, according to a report by the state-run China News Service, and Bank of China said it had lent more than $80 billion as of the end of June.
National leader of the government affair unit of Deloitte Norman Sze has said that the financing demand for the project has since increased from more than $40 billion in 2015 to $62 billion this year, and most of the funding so far has come from Chinese banks.
He added that the finance sector in Pakistan is not very advanced and mature to participate in the projects, but it would be difficult for them to meet such a huge financing demand.
However, China has faced criticism for its decision to import goods and labour for the projects at the expense of the local market.
Pakistan Coal Power Plant Signs $1.5 Billion Deal With Chinese Banks
A joint China-Pakistan coal-fired power plant has signed a loan contract worth $1.5 billion with banks in China, Xinhua news agency reported.
Hubco Coal Power Plant, which is part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, raised the amount from a consortium of banks led by the China Development Bank.
The news agency said that the construction of the power plant, costing about $2 billion, began in March by the China Power Hub Generation Company, a joint venture of Pakistan’s Hub Power Holdings Ltd. and China Power International Investment Ltd.
The project has a total capacity of 1.32 gigawatts and includes two coal-based power plants with a capacity of 660 MW each.
The power plant is expected to start operating in August 2019, eventually producing 9 billion kwh, meeting needs of 4 million Pakistani households and creating 10,000 jobs in the country, Xinhua said.
China Says Unemployment At 3.95 Percent, Lowest In Years
BEIJING: China’s unemployment rate has hit its lowest rate in multiple years at 3.95 percent by the end of September, the ministry of human resources and social security said in a statement on Sunday.
From January to September this year, 10.97 million new jobs have been created in China, a growth of 300,000 compared with the previous year, the ministry said in a pre-prepared statement given to reporters.
The figure represents having essentially fulfilled the ministry’s year-end target, the statement said.
Chinese Company Invests $500m In Gwadar Residential Project
LONDON: A leading Chinese investment company announced to invest $500 million in Gwadar in the first phase of a project aimed at building homes for around 500,000 incoming Chinese professionals expected in Gwadar by 2023.
China Pak Investment Corporation (CPIC) announced at a press conference that the partnership with Top International Engineering Corporation (TIEC), a Chinese state-owned company with over $100 Billion worth of projects delivered since 1950 to develop China Pak Hills.
The ceremony was attended by China Pak Investment Corporation officials Jian Zheng, Chief Operations Officer, Dawei Li, Spokesperson; Stuart Reid, Chief Operations Officer of ONE Investments, architect Vladimir Tchaly; legal Consultant Moshiur Mian and Syed Zeeshaan Shah, the Chief Executive Office of ONE Investments and former Apprentice Star.
Jian Zheng of China Pak Investment Corporation spoke about the relationship with TIEC and the opportunity that the One Belt One Road investment by the Chinese government offers Pakistan and particularly the Port City of Gwadar.
He said that China Pak Hills is an unprecedented development project, adding “China’s policy to unite emerging economies grappling similar aspirations towards development will someday soon, transform nations like Pakistan into developed economy status.”
“This vision has driven the partnership of The China Pak Investment Corporation and Top International Engineering Corporation to develop China Pak Hills formerly known as International Port City with the Gwadar Development Authority,” he added.
Moreover, Tchaly spoke about the vision and creativity that the design team offer and how these will be translated into a contemporary development for a community of over 10,000 residents.
Stuart Reid, COO of One Investments Ltd, said of the landmark project: “China Pak Hills is a unique and exciting opportunity.”
The level of investment and commitment made by the Chinese government in the CPEC guarantees that Gwadar is going to be one of the most important trading and access points in the world, he said.
He added, “[Gwadar’s] geographic position, combined with the infrastructure being created through the CPEC means that it can only grow exponentially.”
Zeeshan Shah, CEO of ONE Investments who starred in the 2013 version of the Apprentice, told Geo News that he had himself visited Gwadar about seven times in two years and found the area most peaceful and conducive for investment.
He shared that the exit and entry points of the whole Gwadar region are controlled by Pakistan army, providing top order security and safety.
“Gwadar has everything that an investor needs. It’s just another world where order exists and everyone working and living there will have foolproof security around them.
He said: “Spanning over 10 million sqft across three phases, China Pak Hills will be the first development of its kind in Gwadar.”
Describing the residential project, he said: “a mixed-use gated development tailor-made for Chinese professionals in Gwadar, it will offer an all-encompassing lifestyle to live, work and play, with a host of facilities that will set the benchmark of future developments.”
The company building the model city has an annual turnover of around $10 billion, he shared,
“The aim of this project is to build infrastructure for the incoming influx of Pakistani and Chinese professionals. Growth in Gwadar will go up massively and it will need strong social infrastructure to cater for this need.”
Zeeshan Shah gave the example of a Chinese city Shenzhen which was a poor village in 1979 but it was developed on the Gwadar model.
He said the population of this town is now over 30 million, its annual growth stands at $250 million.
China is doing the same in Gwadar, its population will be going up by half a million in next six years, he remarked, adding “Gwadar offers tremendous opportunities. Once completed, it will become the most important port city in the World from both an economic and geopolitical perspective.”
The announcement hails an exciting new phase in the development of the port of Gwadar, the ‘Gateway City’ to the $62 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the largest unilateral foreign direct investment from one nation into another.
The CPEC is set to catapult Pakistan’s stature as a key global trade and economic hub and includes a bouquet of projects currently under construction that will not only improve Pakistan’s infrastructure but will deepen the economic and political ties between China and Pakistan.
The China Pak Investment Corporation acquired GDA approved International Port City, which is under application in GDA to be renamed to China Pak Hills.
Pakistan Is Our Iron Clad Friend: Senior CPC Official
A senior Chinese Communist Party (CPC) official Saturday said that Pakistan is China’s iron clad friend and the two brotherly countries have a very profound friendship as sweet as honey and as hard as iron.
“Pakistan is our iron clad friend. Our two countries have a very profound friendship as sweet as honey and as hard as iron,” Guo Yezhou, a vice minister in the CPC’s International Department made these remarks while responding to a question at a press conference on the sidelines of the 19th National Congress of the CPC here.
Stressing a need of paying special attention to neighbourhood diplomacy, he said, “China has many neighbours. We have as many as 14 land neighbours and several other neighbours on the sea. Without a good neighbourhood, we cannot have security for the country,” he said.
“That requires us both from the government and from the party, a need to pay special attention to neighbourhood diplomacy. Guo Yezhou said the CPC’s foreign contacts job should be seen as an important part of the Chinese diplomacy, adding, “We’ve always made plans and pushed forward the job centering on double position-setting, namely that the party’s external exchange is an important front of the party and an important part of the country’s overall diplomacy.”
Guo said that Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, has made systematic instructions on the party’s foreign relations work. ‘Now the job involves party diplomacy, public diplomacy and civil diplomacy’, he said.
The report of the 19th CPC National Congress has raised clear demands for the party’s external contacts job, while the party constitution also carried explicit stipulations on that, Guo said. The department’s job will contribute to forging a community of shared future of human being and pushing forward the party’s construction in the new era, he added. -Monitoring Desk.
China Asks Pakistan To Provide Additional Security For Its Envoy: Reports
China has reportedly asked Pakistan to provide additional security for its long-serving envoy in Islamabad in the wake of threats to his life from an outlawed extremist group, media reports said on Saturday.
The request was made in a letter written to the Ministry of Interior on October 19. The letter, circulated in the local media, was written by the focal person for the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Ping Ying Fi, who has also asked Pakistan to immediately arrest a militant who wanted to “assassinate” Chinese ambassador in Islamabad Yao Jing.
Ping said that Yao is facing threats to his life from a militant, Abdul Wali, who belongs to the banned East Turkestan Independent Movement, which largely operates from China’s Xinjiang region, bordering Pakistan. It is suspected that Wali has entered Pakistan from China.
China asked Pakistan to “enhance the protection” of the ambassador and other Chinese working in Pakistan.
The security of Chinese officials in Pakistan is a major issue and army has been tasked to provide security to the Chinese working on various projects, including the CPEC.
Pakistan’s Interior Ministry and the Chinese embassy have declined to comment on the letter. -Monitoring Desk
Xiaomi Buys 1,500 Microsoft Patents, Showing How Much It Wants The US Market
Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference. We are required to be tough.
To teach our kids to be tough and with each blow life delivers to knock us down, we need to get up, dust ourselves off and pick up where we left off. The more times we start again, the colder and more jaded we become.
What you truly desire. Imagine what you could
Some people believe that showing tough love is an important way to ensure that their children are able to take care of themselves in the future. If you were the recipient of this approach on a regular basis, you might even believe that this has had a positive impact on your life.
Perhaps what’s needed is a shift in attitude. To become stronger and resistant to the tribulations of life, maybe the answer is that we need to become softer not tougher. Maybe what the world needs is more nurture.
If you don’t know much about your subscribers, you could consider running a campaign asking them for more details through a simple preference centre. You may wish to consider offering an incentive or freebie in exchange for this information, which will help boost your response rates.
Do something that pushes your boundaries, something that you wouldn’t ordinarily do. Take a calculated risk and allow yourself to crumble a little.
All parents occasionally pick on their children, but when the so-called jokes become commonplace, this can be a huge problem. You do not need to accept this type of behavior just because your parent has always joked about something such as your height or weight.
A great place to start is with a minimal template and if you’re looking for a quick fix, check out Dynamite – it’s a great example of how an elegant design and the use of whitespace can be highly effective in highlighting what you are promoting.
Tips For Increasing Employee Motivation
Without injuring others or placing your own life in danger, it’s healthy to let go sometimes. You don’t have to be irresponsible to release responsibility and embrace freedom for a change. When life is becoming too burdensome and the weight of obligation and duty seems suffocating, do something that allows you to release yourself from what can feel like a prison.
It’s easy to forget that your subscribers are people with likes and dislikes (not just leads). Firstly, always watch your open, CTR, unsubscribe and complaint rates. That’s the fast way to gauge whether your email was engaging or not. When appropriate, use what personalisation you have at your disposal.
Tips to take better selfy
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If you want to take it to the next level and gauge subscriber sentiment, you could generate feedback by adding a simple “Did you find this email useful?” line in your footer that leads subscribers to a survey. Keep it short and concise though; you’re not after War and Peace.
If a survey seems like too much commitment, check out this fun widget. You never know, this feedback may just generate the next idea that takes your email program to the next level.
Most email service providers have inbuilt mobile optimized templates, but if yours doesn’t/you want something custom and have budget to spare, consider hiring an email marketing developer on Envato Studio or Upwork. Just ensure you do you research and ask for previous work examples before you hire.
Did you grow up believing that your parent was physically or emotionally abusive to you because you deserved it? If so, you may still be justifying the terrible behavior of others at your own expense.
Get In Touch With Emotions
Discover how you really feel about things. It’s easier said than done. Instead of maintaining the status quo and keeping the peace.
Instead of following the herd and making the predictable and reliable decisions that you are expected to make, ask yourself.
What you truly desire. Imagine what you could accomplish, if failing wasn’t an option.If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences.
If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences reliable decisions.
Learning to acknowledge and express our emotions freely may seem like weakness in a culture that requires us to be tough, but in actual fact it takes a strength far more valuable and honorable than living in denial.
- Use the “Spaced Repetition” technique
- Try the “Pinch Yourself” hack
- Schedule learning sessions before bedtime
- Study the content, not the language
This technique was introduced by Maneesh Sethi, a frequent traveler who mastered four foreign languages as an adult. His approach was based on the fact that negative stimuli massively boost self-improvement.
Soft is the new hard
When you think that a situation requires you to be tough, to stiffen your upper lip and puff out your chest in the face of something difficult or even traumatic, consider if you have another option. Maybe for a change it’s time to wallow in the tragedy of your experience and really feel what it is to be human. Striving for mental toughness may close you off to a world of emotional development and progress that you may otherwise live through if you let yourself open up for a change.
How you can use this for language learning?
- Get a set of flashcards for memorizing vocabulary or grammar.
- Master the hard pinch (it should be quite hard) to activate your body’s threat response.
- Review a category of flash cards (such as adjectives or group of words). Don’t pinch yourself at this stage.
- Review the same category, now adding the pinch for each vocabulary word. Spend some time studying the card before moving to the next one.
Softening your perspective towards yourself and others; allowing yourself to experience tenderness and nurturing instead may seem counterproductive, but in the long run, may reap more abundant rewards.
Tough is just bravado. Softening up is a new normal you should try.
You may feel sadness more intensely, or anger. Disappointment, fear, grief. The flip side is you may discover joy like you’ve never allowed yourself to feel before. You may laugh harder, feel more inspired, encounter wonder and awe at things you previously took for granted.
