Connect with us

Pakistan

US extends $132 million debt relief to flood-hit Pakistan

Published

on

  • US Ambassador Donald Blome signs agreement.
  • Assistance approved under G-20 DSSI framework.
  • Our priority is to redirect critical resources in Pakistan: US embassy.

ISLAMABAD: The United States has agreed to suspend loans worth $132 million under the G-20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) framework for Pakistan to assist the South Asian country in its relief, rehab, and reconstruction efforts in the wake of extreme monsoons and record floods.

US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome has signed the second bilateral agreement in this regard, the US Embassy said on Twitter.

The agreement will provide $132 million in US debt relief to Pakistan.

“Our priority is to redirect critical resources in Pakistan,” the US Embassy said in its tweet referring to the historic floods that hit 33 million people and claimed over 1,600 lives across Pakistan since mid-June.

The assistance comes a day after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif attended a ceremony at the embassy to mark the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Blome reaffirmed continuing US support to Pakistan during the difficult recovery process.

“While the water is only now receding and the rebuilding just beginning, the people of the United States continue to stand with Pakistan. We are doing what friends and partners do – support each other when it’s needed most,” the ambassador said.

“While our two democracies have steadfastly stood together over the years, the rapidly changing world provides a pivotal opportunity to reframe the US-Pakistan partnership and recognise that our shared objectives and mutual ambitions go much deeper.”

“When I consider the future of US-Pakistan relations, I see many possibilities to advance our shared interests in trade, investment, clean energy, health, security, education, and other shared priorities. As we look forward to the next 75 years and beyond, I hope you will join me in opening this new door.”

The US ambassador said that the people of the United States would continue to stand with Pakistan.

“The strength of Pakistan-US friendship is demonstrated by more than 66 million dollars in US support for flood response,” the US envoy added.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest News

Lahore, PP-161: LHC deems the ECP recounting order null and invalid

Published

on

By

Farrukh Javed, the victorious candidate, filed a petition against the Election Commission of Pakistan’s order to recount the votes in PP-161 before a single bench of the high court, led by Justice Shahid Karim, was formed.

The bench dismissed the ECP’s order to recount the votes in the constituency and accepted the petition.

The PML-N candidate Umar Sohail filed a petition for a vote recount with the electoral commission, according to Unmute Farrukh Javed MPA’s court plea.

Per the petitioner, the electoral commission issued a notice of vote recount after granting the second-place candidate’s request.

In his view, the election process was not yet over when the ECP issued the order for a vote recount.

The ECP’s order for the recounting of ballots in provincial constituency PP-161 was revoked by the bench after it allowed the petition.

Continue Reading

Latest News

The LHC has issued a summons regarding the policy on wheat procurement.

Published

on

By

The court was considering a petition filed by the Punjab farmers challenging the province government’s decision to decline purchasing wheat from them.

The petitioner alleged that the government is legally obligated to procure wheat from farmers at the designated price and had publicised a policy to purchase wheat from farmers at Rs 3,900 per maund. However, the government has failed to put this policy into effect.

The Punjab government was scheduled to commence the procurement of wheat from farmers on April 22. However, there has been no progress thus far in the wheat purchase, thereby exposing farmers to the risk of selling their harvests at reduced prices as a result of rainfall.

The petitioner implored the court to mandate the government’s procurement of wheat from farmers and to initiate measures against the mafia.

Punjab farmers have filed a petition with the Lahore High Court (LHC) to challenge the government’s decision to not purchase their wheat.

Following an initial hearing on the case, Justice Shahid Karim, the judge of the LHC, requested a documentation of the Punjab government’s choices pertaining to wheat purchase.

Punjab’s farmers are currently protesting the government’s decision to postpone the purchase of wheat from them.

Yesterday, insiders from the Food Department disclosed that the Punjab government has not yet made a decision regarding the procurement of wheat.

Continue Reading

Latest News

Lahore experiences a winter-like ambiance following rainfall.

Published

on

By

Lahore’s maximum temperature has significantly decreased due to recent rainfall in the province capital over the past 24 hours.

Jail Road saw a rainfall of 8.5 millimeters, Gulberg received 10 millimeters, and Lakshmi Chowk received 14 millimeters of rainfall. In addition, Upper Mall received a rainfall measurement of 5 millimeters, Mughalpura received 3.5 millimeters, and Tajpura received 3 millimeters.

In addition, Nishtar Town received a rainfall of 1 millimeter, Pani Wala Talab received 12 millimeters, Farukh Abad received 4 millimeters, Gulshan Ravi received 20 millimeters, Iqbal Town received 6 millimeters, Samanabad received 8 millimeters, and Johar Town received 1 millimeter.

The city’s electricity transmission infrastructure has been significantly affected by the rain, resulting in the tripping of over 100 Lesco feeders. Multiple localities had power outages as a result of tripped feeders and other technical malfunctions.

Power outages have resulted in substantial discomfort for people in several localities, including as Manawan, Batapur, Sabzazar, Gulshan Ravi, Samanabad, Pir Nasir, Mughalpura, Shalimar, Mustafa Abad, Baghbanpura, Ferozpur Road, Islampura, Qila Gujjar Singh, and Walton Road.

Continue Reading

Trending