FARUKH SHEHZAD

ISLAMABAD, NOV 20: Federal Minis­ter for Law and Justice Barrister Dr Farogh Naseem has said that the government has averted the Indian move to file a contempt petition before the International Court of Justice against Pakistan for non-compliance with the ICJ decision on Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav.

Addressing a press conference on Friday, he said the bill passed by the joint sitting of parliament and related to Jadhav was not person-specific rather it was a national security issue.

The parliament had passed the International Court of Justice (Review and Reconsideration) Bill, 2021 on Wednesday to provide for the right of review and reconsideration in the Jadhav case in line with the judgement of the ICJ.

“This was the red line for Pakistan. India would have gone to the ICJ and filed a contempt case against us if we have not enacted this law,” the law minister said.

FAROGH SAYS ICJ BILL PASSED RECENTLY IS NOT PERSON-SPECIFIC

He said that Pakistan had prevented India from filing a contempt case which was called defiance in the ICJ, adding that India could have moved the United Nations Security Council for imposing sanctions on Pakistan.

Mr Naseem criticised the opposition parties for politicising the issue and said they lacked vision to differentiate between right and wrong.

Anti-rape law

Meanwhile, parliamentary secretary for law and justice Maleeka Bukhari, who also spoke at the presser, congratulated the nation on the adoption of the landmark anti-rape legislation by the parliament.

However, she said that the proposal of chemical castration of sex offenders had been dropped in the criminal law amendments after the Council of Islamic Ideology declared it against Islamic injunctions, adding that the constitution barred any un-Islamic legislation.

She lamented the lowest conviction rate of sex offenders saying that it was about one or two per cent. Besides other issues, she explained, out of court settlement in rape cases was a major reason for the lowest conviction and higher acquittal rate. Ms Bukhari expressed hope that the new legislation would discourage out of court settlement.

She said that the law had abolished unnecessary procedures, making it simple for a rape victim to proceed against the offender.

She further said that the legislation also provided for registration of sex offenders and the National Database and Regis­tration Authority would make arrangements for this purpose.

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Courtesy Dawn News

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ISLAMABAD, NOV 19: The upper house of parliament on Friday passed four bills, including the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Bill 2021 and the National Accountability Amendment Bill 2021, amidst protests from the opposition benches.

Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari has congratulated media persons on the passage of the journalist protection bill.

“Today, a two-year struggle to provide a comprehensive journalist and media professionals protection law, drafted in consultation with journalists’ bodies, was finally realised through parliament,” she said.

The minister said that President Arif Alvi will now sign the bill into law, and also thanked journalists and media professionals for “their valuable inputs and support”.

“The bill reflects these inputs,” she said, adding that it was drafted with consensus. Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry also hailed the passage of bill, saying it was an expression of the government’s commitment towards journalistic freedom.

“Congratulations to working journalists. This bill will grant journalists rights that are only given to media professionals in highly developed societies,” the minister said in a tweet.

He also thanked Mazari for turning his idea for journalists’ protection into reality. He said the new law would pave the way in securing the lives of journalists.

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Courtesy Dawn News

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Ramallah, NOV 18: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said Wednesday that Israeli policies continue to undermine a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, local media reported.

Abbas met with US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield in the West Bank after her two-day visit to Israel.

According to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA, he said during the meeting that the Israeli practices of establishing illegal settlements, killing, confiscation of land, house demolitions and attempting to expel Palestinians from their homes in neighborhoods of Jerusalem all lead to dangerously undermining the two-state solution for which the US administration has announced its full support.

"We do not accept in any way the classification of six Palestinian civil society organizations as terrorist by the occupation authorities, and we do not accept the continued abuse of prisoners and the holding of the bodies of martyrs," he said.

"In the event that the Israeli occupation authorities insist on denial of the signed agreements and moving away from the path of peace, we have options, and we will take measures that preserve the rights of our people and their national interests," Abbas added.

"Today I met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. We discussed rebuilding the U.S.-Palestinian relationship, ensuring UNRWA lives up to its commitments, the importance of respecting human rights, and our shared commitment to a two-state solution," Thomas-Greenfield said on Twitter.

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Courtesy Anews

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ISLAMABAD, NOV 17: Amid fervent protest by the opposition, the government on Wednesday managed to bulldoze amendments to the Elections Act, 2017, in the joint session of parliament, thereby allowing the use of electronic voting machines and granting voting rights to overseas Pakistanis.

This prompted the opposition to tear copies of the agenda and walk out of the session in protest. Lawmakers also gathered around the treasury benches, chanting slogans against Prime Minister Imran Khan and his government.

In order to avoid a situation where lawmakers from the opposition and government got into a physical altercation, the sergeants-at-arms were seen standing shoulder-to-shoulder to create a barrier between the two sides.

Earlier, the bill on the use of EVMs was deferred at the request of Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan, but it was later taken up again and put up to a vote.

ICJ review and reconsideration bill passed

The parliament in today’s joint sitting also passed a bill to provide for the right of review and reconsideration in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case to bring into effect the judgment of the International Court of Justice.

The International Court of Justice (Review and Re-consideration) Bill, 2020, was moved by Law Minister Farogh Nasim. It was passed with a majority vote.

The statement of objects and reasons of the bill says that the government of India initiated proceedings against Pakistan in the ICJ concerning alleged violations of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations in the matter of the detention and trial of an Indian national, Commander Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav of Indian spy agency RAW, who was sentenced to death by a military court in Pakistan in April 2017.

The ICJ gave its judgment on July 17, 2019, wherein it observed that Pakistan was under an obligation to provide by means of its own choosing effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav, so as to ensure that full weight was given to the effect of the violation of the rights set forth in Article 36 of the Vienna Convention, taking account of paragraphs 139, 145 and 146 of the judgment.

In order to give full effect to the said judgment, it is necessary that a mechanism for review and reconsideration of Pakistan’s own choice be provided.

‘Evil and vicious machines’

As the session started at around noon, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif termed electronic voting machines (EVMs) “evil and vicious machines” and accused the government of not being sincere in creating a consensus on electoral reforms.

Addressing the joint session of parliament, Shehbaz said that the government and its allies wanted to bulldoze important bills. He termed it “illegal” and said that it was equivalent to spoiling the traditions of parliament.

Shehbaz, who had earlier today written a letter to National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser airing his grievances about the haste in passing the bills without a consensus, said that initially the joint session was delayed after the government said it would consult with the opposition on the issue.

“You sent a letter to me and the whole joint opposition,” he said, adding that in response he submitted a comprehensive answer with “great suggestions”. “But speaker, you cancelled your contact and we received no answer from you.”

Commenting on the proposal for consultations, he called it a “ploy to buy time” so that the government could secure the votes it needed. “You had no intention of doing consultations on the issue.”

He said that there are always allegations of rigging during the elections. “This is the first time in history that there are allegations of rigging before the elections.”

He claimed that the “selected government” wanted to introduce EVMs because it can no longer ask the people for votes.

Talking about the results transmission system (RTS), the opposition leader said that the government came into power in 2018 using the ‘road transport system’. “Now the road transport system is being abandoned for the evil [and] vicious machine.”

Shehbaz asked the speaker to defer the joint session so “comprehensive consultation” could take place on the matter of electoral reforms.

Addressing Qaiser, Shehbaz said that the people will not forgive him if he allowed the bills to be bulldozed in today’s session and urged him to recognise his responsibility as speaker of the House. He also decried the “illegal and unconstitutional” way the bills were presented.

He said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), which is responsible for carrying out fair and transparent elections, had also expressed its reservations about EVMs. “They want to pass these laws despite their reservations.”

He said that the party that had once talked about democracy, transparency and change, now wanted to pass “black laws”.

“If you allow this black law to be passed, then Pakistan will be severely damaged for which responsibility will be on you and them,” he said while addressing Qaiser.

Shehbaz also stated that the several countries had rejected the “evil and vicious machines”.

“If the government used the energy that it is spending on this issue to tackle inflation, then we might have seen a difference. But they are not concerned. They are only concerned with remaining in power without securing the people’s vote.”

‘EVMs will be used to bury evil, vicious designs’

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi began his speech by calling it a “historic day”, stating that parliament will pass laws to make the electoral process “clean and transparent”.

“Shehbaz said that the government wanted to introduce a black law. Absolutely not, the government wants to wash away the blackness of the past.”

The minister added that the government did not want to bulldoze legislation, and said that they had consulted opposition members so that their reservations could be incorporated into the bills. “You didn’t pay attention.”

Qureshi also rejected the impression that the government had previously cancelled the session because it did not have the numbers. “If we didn’t have the numbers, then how are we presenting these bills today? There is solidarity in government ranks and our allies are standing with us.”

He said that the government followed legislative procedures, adding that the session was adjourned to remove the questions some of their allies had.

“You call EVMs ‘evil and vicious machines’ and that is your right. But EVMs are not evil and vicious machines, they are being introduced to bury evil and vicious designs.” He said that the government wanted to prioritise a credible and transparent electoral process.

The minister said that overseas Pakistanis were the nation’s asset and the government wanted to involve them in policy and decision-making.

Following Qureshi’s address, there was a heated exchange between NA Speaker Qaiser and a parliamentarian. Qaiser warned the member of suspension and told him to “stay within your limits”.

“Is this the [right] way to talk?” the NA Speaker remarked before inviting PPP leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to deliver his speech.

Bilawal criticises ‘one-sided reforms’

Addressing the session, Bilawal criticised the government’s “one-sided” electoral reforms which have never before been seen in the country’s history.

He said that during the government of former premier Nawaz Sharif, the PML-N had a two-third majority. “If that government had unilaterally decided and used the majority to force reforms, then the PTI and the PPP would not have been able to do anything.

“If they had decided to introduce a Constitutional amendment, then we would have to accept their decision. But they achieved a consensus,” he said.

He said that if the government had followed in the footsteps of its predecessor, then the opposition would have taken part in the legislation process. “If we carried out reforms together then the next election would not be controversial and it would have been Khan Sahab’s success.”

However, he said that the opposition would not accept the results of the next election if the government continued in the manner it was proceeding in.

He said that the PML-N and the PPP supported giving voting rights to overseas Pakistanis. “Despite this, the government wants to carry out one-sided legislation.”

Bilawal noted that overseas Pakistanis had representation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and called for introducing a similar system.

“How can we accept your suggestion where Pakistanis sitting in Paris, California and Britain decide for the people of Karachi and the tribal areas? They should have their own electoral college.”

He said that the government’s efforts, that were based on bad intentions, had been underway for some time and said that it had given an NRO to Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav.

“If you have to give relief to anyone then it should be the poor people of Pakistan who are facing a multitude of problems […] how can you expect that we will permit you to use this House to give an NRO to that Indian spy?”

Govt laying basis of discord

Speaking next, JUI-F’s Maulana Asad Mahmood accused the government of laying the basis of discord and chaos by introducing such laws, adding that if the government bulldozed the legislation, the nation would not accept it.

The JUI-F lawmaker warned that a law, which had become controversial even before passage, would lead to protests in the country for which the government and its supporters would be held responsible. He advised the government not to pass the law in haste.

When it was his turn to speak, MNA Mohsin Dawar — an activist of the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement — reminded the lawmakers that one of their colleagues, Ali Wazir, was not present in the session.

“It is sad and shameful that Ali Wazir is not present in this house,” he lamented, adding that while negotiations were being done with groups such as the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan and even the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, MNA Ali Wazir was languishing in jail for his one speech.

“It is sad that Waziristan is not represented here,” he said, adding that any legislation on the conduct of elections must be done with the consensus of all lawmakers as has been the case in the past.

Bill presented in session

After the speeches, Awan presented the bill to amend the Elections Act, 2017 [The Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2021]. The lawmakers present in the session voted on whether the bill should be tabled in the Assembly.

Those lawmakers who were in agreement stood up in their seats while those opposed to the motion remained seated.

Some time later, the speaker announced that the motion to present the bill had been passed with 221 lawmakers voting for and 203 against it.

However, the opposition claimed that the counting had discrepancies and that the prime minister’s advisers, who are not in fact elected officials, had also been included in the count. At this, the speaker ordered a recount.

Govt confident of passing bills

Prime Minister Imran Khan, who arrived at Parliament House shortly before the session was expected to begin, was hounded by the media as he made his way to chair a meeting of the PTI’s parliamentary team but remained tight-lipped. The government’s coalition partners were also part of the meeting.

“You are conducting so many meetings. Are you worried about something despite having a majority?” asked a reporter.

“Who is meeting people?” PM Imran shot back as he appeared to discourage the impression that he had to convince his allies for support in today’s session.

“When a sportsman steps onto the playing field, he is prepared for every possible outcome and vows to perform better than his opponent,” he added.

Speaking to the media after the parliamentary party meeting, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said that the premier had thanked the government’s allies for their support as well as lawmakers who had managed to arrive despite personal circumstances.

Chaudhry said lawmakers had expressed confidence in the premier’s leadership, which would be reflected in the joint session. He said that the bills the government would table would be “easily passed”.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who also spoke to the media at Parliament House, said that the government had complete trust in its allies. “We trust them because the people of their constituencies have given them the mandate,” he said.

He said that the government wanted fair and transparent polls which would strengthen democracy in the country. The minister said that the government wanted to protect the rights of the people, which was the basic responsibility of legislators.

Shehbaz writes letter to NA speaker

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari — who arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday evening — met with Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif at the latter’s chamber. The two also attended a parliamentary meeting of the joint opposition.

Later, a delegation of opposition leaders called on National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser and handed over a letter written by Shehbaz,

In the letter, the PML-N president said that he had provided a comprehensive proposal to achieve consensus on the bills. “Unfortunately, no response was received from your side which creates doubts about your intentions,” he said.

“Instead of considering our proposal to achieve consensus on the bills, late last night we received less than 16 hours notice from your office that the joint sitting of Parliament had been called to meet at 12pm today. Is this how consensus on issues of national importance is achieved?” he asked.

He said that the bills being considered today included amendments to the election laws. “We want to remind you that in the history of Pakistan, legislation regarding elections has never been done in this unilateral manner; election laws have always been made with extensive consultation and consensus with all parties in parliament,” Shehbaz said.

“Your partisan conduct in handling these bills of national importance and the joint sitting removed our confidence in you as custodian of the House. We therefore demand that you take immediate action to rectify this egregious wrong before today’s joint sitting is convened,” he wrote.

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Courtesy Dawn News

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By Faizan Hayat Khan

Since we are heading towards the last quarter of 2021, it is an excellent time to reflect on the eLearning trends of this year. It is interesting to explore the aftermath of the unexpected 2020, particularly in the eLearning industry. It is time to understand what has been achieved and what to expect in the coming months.

Importance of eLearning Businesses in 2021

Electronic learning, better known as eLearning, is the term given to learning through digital resources, mainly on the internet. eLearning offers people the freedom to access education whenever they want to, at their convenience. Due to this, the eLearning industry has achieved massive growth over the past few years, and it is expected to go from USD 90 million approx. in 2016 to USD 181 million approx. by the end of 2025.

In today’s market, efficient use of technology can make or break a business. Thus, eLearning is a growing trend among businesses and can help elevate a business to reach new heights. Some of the benefits of using eLearning can be:

• Skills Upgrade

Employees can gain vital skills through eLearning, which could transform into higher productivity, lower employee turnover, and increased efficiency. eLearning can help learners in polishing the communication skills that can help them in their workplace. Moreover, there are millions of online courses available online that can improve the skill set of an individual.

• Business Expansion

Some businesses may decide to expand into a new market, but they cannot afford to spend loads of resources acquiring new infrastructure or building offices. eLearning enables these businesses to hire remote employees who can work from home and use the LMS platforms to acquire knowledge and comply with regulations and other company policies.

• Measurable Impact

One of the most significant advantages of eLearning, compared to traditional learning, is that the progress through eLearning can be reliably measured. It can display metrics that help identify how many employees completed a particular course, time taken to finish courses or scores in quizzes, etc. This can help identify the progress of employee training.

Top eLearning Trends in 2021

Understandably, over time, things change. More and more eLearning methods have been introduced over the years. Businesses need to constantly evolve to get ahead of the competition as the industry continuously adapts to new technology. Therefore, the top eLearning trends in 2021 can be seen below:

1) Mastery-Based Learning

This trend is an instructional approach where the learners need to demonstrate a high level of understanding of one topic or subject before moving on to the next. This method is designed to ensure that the learners gain knowledge and not just skip topics to finish the course quickly.

Mastery-based learning can only thrive if it has the following factors included:

• Clear and specific learning objectives
• Precise mastery thresholds meaning what exactly should learners know
• Make learners display mastery, e.g., through quizzes, tests
• Make teachers assess learners’ knowledge
• Display the data

There are many assessment tools inside the Edly LMS that can help you organize data and use our platform effectively to enable learners to gain the highest levels of mastery.

2) Communication Tools

With Covid-19 forming a significant role in people’s lives, the use of online video-conferencing platforms has been on the rise. All latest LMS’s need to be integrated with these tools, facilitating smooth communication between instructors and students.

Therefore, the use of communication tools in an LMS is crucial. All relevant communication tools are available in the LMS Edly provides, enabling you to connect with learners effectively.

3) Tracking and Training Personalization

Organizations, at all times, need to make better decisions to thrive in this world, and there is no doubt that better decisions stem from better and reliable data.

A well-organized LMS platform enables organizations to track their learners’ progress through test scores, course completion rate, etc., and take appropriate actions, if necessary. Various training tracking software are available on an LMS, which help an organization to:

• Assign staff members to training
• Look at which members completed the training
• Offers a number of training methods
• Know when training needs to be redone

4) New Technology: AI, VR

The way we tackle all the information depends on the new technology being introduced into the world. Some components of this new tech are the ever-growing fields of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Virtual Reality (VR).

AI is the development of computer systems such that machines can complete the tasks usually completed by human intelligence. AI can play a significant role in the LMS systems as it can direct learners to resources based on their weaknesses in a matter of minutes.

VR, on the other hand, refers to the activities that happen in an entirely digital environment. Adding an LMS to it can allow learners to get hands-on experience and move through scenarios without the need for physical/on-job training.

5) Micro-Learning

Microlearning refers to developing an extensive skill with small bits and pieces of information given gradually. This can be done by providing small modules with videos that are only 5-10 minutes long. This method engages the learner and solves the problem of learners getting distracted or bored.

Microlearning is also very popular among Millenials and Gen Z learners as it has created active participation and retention among them by delivering highly targeted content.

6) Content Creation and Curation

One of the biggest problems in managing an online learning platform is finding high-quality, relatable content for learners, which helps with information retention.

Therefore, content curation is as important as creating content yourself. A famous example in content curation is the website: Slashdot. This website provides snippets of news articles and a bit of commentary on why the information is relevant.

Content curation can logically organize the information online, which helps the learners anticipate a course’s flow. Learners will also feel that the course provided is reliable and links to the information given online, increasing the credibility of an organization’s eLearning courses.

7) Gamification

Video games have been known as the most addictive form of entertainment for decades, and there’s a reason for that. Adding game mechanics, combined with flashy visuals, to non-game environments like LMS platforms can rapidly increase participation and inspire learners to collaborate and interact more.

The gamification industry is on such a rise that it is expected to reach USD 38.42 million by 2026, displaying a CAGR of 25.10% from 2021-2026.

Engagement with game mechanics is not only beneficial for an organization’s eLearning needs, but it can also provide insightful data that can help influence marketing campaigns and reach performance goals.

Conclusively

Following these eLearning trends, an LMS system can help position your organization among the top eLearning providers, and Edly is here to help you with that.

Contact us and request a demo to see what Edly can bring to the table!

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LAHORE, NOV 16: Pakistan will host the Men’s Champions Trophy in 2025, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Tuesday.

It will be the first major global cricket tournament to be played in Pakistan since 1996 when it hosted the Men’s Cricket World Cup alongside India and Sri Lanka. The final was played in Lahore with Sri Lanka claiming the title.

Reacting to the announcement, Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ramiz Raja said it was a matter of great pride and delight that the country would host the major ICC tournament.

According to the ICC, the subsequent Champion Trophy edition in 2029 will be hosted by India.

The ICC Champions Trophy was also scheduled to be played in Pakistan in 2009 but it was moved to England due to security reasons.

The tournament was moved out of Pakistan after three countries — Australia, England and New Zealand — had refused to tour the country over security fears months after an attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore.

USA to co-host T20 World Cup

Releasing its Future Tours Programme , the ICC said “the Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 will go somewhere it has never been before, with USA hosting the event alongside the West Indies, which staged the tournament in 2010.”

In 2026, India and Sri Lanka will host the Men’s T20 World Cup, while the next 20-over World Cup in 2028 will be jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand.

The 50-over ICC Men’s World Cup 2027 will be co-hosted by South Africa Zimbabwe and Namibia, while its next edition of 2031 will be held in Bangladesh and India.

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Courtesy Dawn News

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ISLAMABAD, Nov 16: Ulanbek Totuiaev, Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan has said that the geostrategic location of his country offered great business opportunities to Pakistan while Pakistan was a gateway for Central Asian countries for better market access to outside world, therefore, Kyrgyzstan was keen to further promote economic cooperation with Pakistan to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.

He said this while exchanging views with the business community during his visit to the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI).

The Envoy said that the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek had hosted a very successful second Kyrgyz-Pakistan business forum entitled "Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan in the Age of Socio-Economic Integration" in October this year and his embassy was interested to organize another Kyrgyz-Pakistan business forum in collaboration with ICCI in Islamabad or Bishkek to further strengthen the business linkages between the private sectors of both countries.

He said that Kyrgyzstan was a member of Eurasian Economic Union, which was a market of 180 million people and was also a beneficiary of the EU's GSP Plus. Thus close economic cooperation of Pakistan with Kyrgyzstan would be more beneficial for both countries. He also discussed a wide-range of areas for promoting trade and economic ties with Pakistan.

Speaking at the occasion, Shakeel Munir, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that Pakistan was focusing on Central Asia for trade & exports and close cooperation with Kyrgyzstan would help it in getting better market access to this important region.

He said that Kyrgyzstan was rich in hydropower generation and it can cooperate with Pakistan in this field. He said that Pakistan could export many products to Kyrgyzstan including marble & granite, pharmaceuticals, textiles, surgical instruments, food products, sports goods, leather products, IT, engineering goods and Kyrgyzstan should increase its imports from Pakistan to provide good quality products at competitive prices to its consumers.

He said that both countries have good potential to cooperate in the tourism sector for mutual benefit. He said that ICCI would consider organizing a Pak-Kyrgyz business forum in collaboration with Kyrgyz Embassy.

Jamshaid Akhtar Sheikh, Senior Vice President ICCI said that Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan should encourage direct commercial flights between their major cities that would help in promoting business relations between the two countries.

Faheem Khan, Vice President ICCI stressed for frequent exchange of trade delegations between Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan to explore new avenues of trade promotion.

Akhtar Hussain, Ch. Ashraf Farzand, Asher Hafeez and others also spoke at the occasion and shared useful ideas for promoting trade and economic relations between Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan.

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