Partnership Signed to increase cultural understanding between businesses and people of Pakistan and China.

Partnership Signed to increase cultural understanding between businesses and people of Pakistan and China.

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Video Content Competition on Pakistan China relationship will be launched to promote culture and trade between the two countries.

Diplomatic relation between People's Republic of China and Pakistan was established on 21 May 1951. Although people to people understanding between two countries is exemplary hoverer cultural understanding between businesses and people can be improved. For the purpose China Pakistan Study Center (CPSC) at Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) and RINSTRA signed memorandum of understanding. The memorandum of understanding was signed by Dr. Talat Shabbir Director China Pakistan Study Centre and Amir Jahangir Chief Executive Officer RINSTRA Technologies.

Partnership Signed between China Pakistan Study Center at ISSI and RINSTRA to increase cultural understanding between businesses and people of Pakistan and China. In the picture Director CPSC, Dr. Talat Shabbir and CEO RINSTRA, Amir Jahangir signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the two organizations.

Speaking at the occasion Director General Institute of Strategic Studies Ambassador Azaz Ahmad Chaudhary said “The ISSI provides a platform for quality policy input through informed research, objective analysis and dialogue on regional and international issues affecting peace, security and development of Pakistan. We are confident that this partnership will create knowledge resources among the youth and the business community alike while providing strategic direction for policy makers”. 

On the signing of the MOU Dr. Talat Shabbir Director ISSI said “The memorandum of understanding underlines to build cultural, business and economic cooperation and understanding. The partnership will also highlight China and Pakistan’s cooperation and implication for the region and the world .This partnership will help building people to people relationships, Government relations in defense cooperation and societal collaboration for building knowledge ecosystems

Amir Jahangir Chief Executive Officer RINSTRA Technologies said “In this new era of information engagement it is important to build the vocabulary and understanding around the partnerships that both Pakistan and China are striving for. This cooperation between CPSC and RINSTRA will set new benchmark for understanding around the future challenges for our international partnerships for Public diplomacy discourse”

This partnership is being signed to build better understanding among the masses and the business community in both China and Pakistan. The partnership will also facilitate content development in Mandarin, Urdu and English. 

More than 60,000 Chinese expats live in Pakistan and more than 20,000 Pakistani students are studying in Chinese universities. Pakistan exports to China stood at US$1.87 Billion during 2020. Multibillion dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor has strengthened China Pakistan partnership yet there is much more work required in People to People Relationship Building in Knowledge Development.

Established in August 2016, the China Pakistan Study Center is the leading think tank in Pakistan, focusing on public policy, diplomacy and building cultural understanding between China and Pakistan. Considering the evolving regional and global scenarios, CPSC has been tasked with carrying out dedicated research and analysis of China’s policies, and their impact on Pakistan and the region. CPSC is also engaged in national and international outreach to promote better understanding of Pakistan-China relations, develop linkages with think-tanks in China and advance people to people contacts.

RINSTRA is the outcome of the thought leadership of Dice Foundation USA’s Creative Arts and Media Initiative (DICE CAM). It is part of Dice Foundation’s National Innovation Basket (NIB) program, which aims to create media as a cornerstone of Pakistan’s growth strategy.

RINSTRA is Pakistan’s first short-form digital media platform for on-demand streaming and for creation of user generated original content on iRINSTRA. The organization provides entrepreneurship opportunities to emerging and established content creators and film makers in Pakistan and beyond. RINSTRA gives content creators access to a large Pakistani community around the globe, and ithas been able to create a unique platform that offers dramas and films, while enabling users to generate their own content on the same platform. It also has a feature for Content Competition where, more than 100 academic institutions in Pakistan are competing on various thematic areas. The Fest feature of the application has provided some of the leading Film Festivals to partner with RINSTRA for digital viewing of their films and documentaries. This has created an unprecedented experience for viewers in the country.  

Creative and independent content with premier shows and films can be accessed on RINSTRA by visiting the website http://www.rinstra.com or downloading apps from the Google Play Store and/or Apple App Store

The Asian Development Bank is due to approve a USD500 million budgetary support to Pakistan

The Asian Development Bank is due to approve a USD500 million budgetary support to Pakistan. According to The Express Tribune, the bank’s executive board will vote on Pakistan’s request Aug. 27.

The ADB funding forms part of the Accelerated Economic Transformation Program, approved in September 2008.

Pakistan's economy has been seriously affected by the skyrocketing international prices of oil and food. The severity of the exogenous shocks, aggravated by the uncertainties surrounding the recent political transition, has been felt on several fronts over the last fiscal year (June 2007-July 2008): the year-on-year overall domestic inflation reaching 24% from 7%; deterioration in the external accounts with current account deficit widening to 8.5% of GDP from 4.8%; depreciation of the Pakistani rupee (PRs) by 22%; foreign exchange reserves declining by more than 40% to $6 billion (about 1.5 months of imports); and unprecedented fuel, food and electricity subsidy needs, which rose four-fold to PRs408 billion ($6 billion) from their original budgeted level. Symptomatic of the declining investor confidence, the Karachi stock index dropped by more than 35% during April-July 2008, and the spreads on sovereign debt have surpassed 1,100 basis points at end-August 2008 from less than 200 basis points in early 2007. The outcome of all this has been a decline in real gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 5.8% from 7% during the previous year.

These challenges facing Pakistan have come despite steady real GDP growth of 7.3% on average per year during FY2004-FY2007. But they have also come in the context of, as well as due to, persistent fiscal, trade and investment imbalances and lack of any significant structural changes in the economy.

Pakistan now needs to transform itself in three directions:

First, it has to address the immediate distortions facing the economy, particularly in the agriculture and energy sectors. The pricing and procurement system for wheat needs to be restructured, and subsidies better targeted to benefit the poor and vulnerable. Untargeted wheat subsidies cost the Government PRs40 billion ($600 million) in fiscal year (FY) 2008. In the electricity sector, Pakistan doest not yet have an automatic tariff adjustment mechanism. The Government needs to reform the subsidy system in the sector, since it has not been able to settle the payments owed to distribution companies, which has resulted in a vicious circular debt problem and debt overhang. This needs to be addressed urgently to resolve the present energy crisis. Electricity subsidies are estimated to have cost PRs133 billion in FY2008 ($2 billion). In addition to these subsidy needs, an estimated $1.6 billion is required to partially protect the poor.

Second, Pakistan needs to strengthen financial intermediation to facilitate structural transformation. At the macro level, the Government has relied heavily on the central bank for its fiscal requirements, a practice that needs to be reversed. In parallel, the legal and regulatory framework should be strengthened to manage risks more effectively in the financial sector, promote consumer confidence, and deepen financial intermediation. 

Third, over the medium to long term, the production and trade structure of the economy needs to be transformed so Pakistan can compete more effectively in the global economy. A deeper industrial base is vital, along with a more productive agricultural sector, greater value creation in the service sector, and far greater export sophistication. To achieve this, the Government has to (i) address short-term policy and institutional distortions, (ii) identify industries where it might compete on a global scale, and (iii) attract private sector investments.

ADB has worked in the past with Pakistan alongside other development partners to support reforms and investments in all three directions. The challenges now facing the country are diverse and significant that immediate assistance is needed to address the short term constraints and to provide safety nets for the poor, while paving way for boosting Pakistan's competitiveness.

ADB was scheduled to approve the budgetary support in May 2010 but deferred the decision due to the Pakistani government’s failure to provide a comprehensive financing plan to rid the inter-corporate debt of state-run companies.