Category: Business

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir)

easypaisa, Pakistan’s leading digital payments platform, celebrated International Women’s Day by to renew its pledge towards financial empowerment of women. As a pioneer of digital payments in Pakistan, easypaisa has been at the forefront to increase financial literacy and promote financial inclusion amongst women so they can have better control over their money and are economically independent.

To celebrate the strong and resilient women of TMB and easypaisa, special events were held in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad offices.

A panel discussion was also organized on the topic “Advancing financial empowerment for women in Pakistan”. Panelists from different industries including fintech, HR, advocacy and entertainment participated in the discussion. Women leaders of TMB & easypaisa were also part of the panel where they highlighted their personal journey towards reaching new heights in their careers and how they attained financial empowerment in the process.

Commenting on the occasion, M. Mudassar Aqil, CEO easypaisa & Telenor Microfinance Bank said: “On this International Women’s Day, we at TMB & easypaisa are honored to celebrate remarkable women. As we endeavor to create a more inclusive Pakistan, we acknowledge that financial inclusion and women empowerment are a moral imperative. With more than half of our population being women, it’s our utmost responsibility to equip them with the necessary tools, resources, and support to seize control of their destinies and realize their ambitions.

“As an organization, we pledge to take concrete steps to support and promote women in leadership roles and make TMB/ easypaisa an employer of choice through effective implementation of favorable policies and practices.

 He also emphasized that as a business, TMB/ easypaisa will continue to play it’s role for greater financial empowerment of women and further its mission of a financially inclusive Pakistan where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive.

 Sharing her thoughts, Pouruchisty Sidhwa, CHRO easypaisa & Telenor Microfinance Bank said: “In Pakistan less than 12% women are in leadership positions, this is one of the lowest in the region. To financially empower women, it is imperative to open new opportunities for them so they can break the glass ceiling and make a mark. At TMB/ easypaisa we are committed to champion this cause and ensure equity for women at all levels.

easypaisa’s commitment to empowering women is reflected in its efforts to improve financial inclusion ratios. Through the power of technology and collaborations, easypaisa has made it easier for women to access financial services tailored to their specific needs.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir)

We are thrilled to share that Inc. magazine has recognized 10Pearls as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the Mid-Atlantic region. The magazine ranks 10Pearls as No. 62 on the fourth annual Inc. 5000 Regionals: Mid-Atlantic list, with a two-year revenue growth of 172 percent.

Inc 5000 Regionals: Mid-Atlantic list is the most prestigious ranking of the fastest-growing Mid-Atlantic private companies, based in the District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. Born of the annual Inc. 5000 franchise where 10Pearls has already been listed four times in a row, this regional list represents a unique look at the most successful companies within the Mid-Atlantic economy’s most dynamic segment – its independent small businesses. 

“10Pearls continues to achieve record growth as a result of strategic focus and prioritization of delivering tangible customer value. Winning this honor once again is a true testament of the hard work of our global teams. We’re grateful to our customers for their continued trust and partnership.” said Imran Aftab, CEO at 10Pearls.

10Pearls continues to expand its digital innovation and engineering services capabilities globally, through both organic and strategic acquisitive expansion. Just last year, 10Pearls acquired two businesses in Costa Rica and Peru adding to its Latin America presence.

The companies on this list show a remarkable rate of growth across all industries in the Mid-Atlantic region. Between 2019 and 2021, these 142 private companies had an average growth rate of 381 percent and, in 2021 alone, they added 14,439 jobs and $2.66 billion to the Mid-Atlantic region’s economy. Companies based in the Richmond, Virginia and the Washington, D.C. areas had the highest growth rates overall.

“This year’s Inc. 5000 Regional winners represent one of the most exceptional and exciting lists of America’s off-the-charts growth companies. They’re disrupters and job creators, and all delivered an outsize impact on the economy. Remember their names and follow their lead. These are the companies you’ll be hearing about for years to come,” said Scott Omelianuk, editor-in-chief of Inc. magazine.

 

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir)

Zonergy Corporation made an impressive debut in the three-day MIDDLE EAST ENERGY DUBAI 2023 was grandly opened at Dubai World Trade Center. Led by Jun Guo, Executive director and President of the company, Zonergy Corporation showcase its Smart Energy solutions for Middle eastern market. This exhibition focuses on the household energy storage system and portable power supply products offered by the company, attracting great attention from visitors.

As one of the regions with the strongest solar radiation intensity and sunshine duration in the world, the Middle East region boasts a vast photovoltaic new energy market. According to Zawya website,  the latest report released by APRICORP shows that the low-carbon energy industry in the Middle East and North Africa is ramping up efforts to construct projects, and the project value is expected to reach 257 billion US dollars by 2030.

The company’s products and projects receive wide attention from clients, and cooperation intentions are reached on the scene At this exhibition, Zonergy focused on the latest household energy products of the company considering local needs. Panda series products can satisfy the needs of local families. With a designed modular capacity of 5kWh, it can be flexibly expanded from 5 to 30kWh; with stronger stability, the faulty battery module can be automatically isolated to ensure the stable operation of the system; and powered by built-in smart grid management system, it can serve the function of power grid dispatching. The portable power bank products offered by Zonergy come in with a wide array of models, including large, medium and small specifications, multiple functions, complete certification, standard lithium iron phosphate battery, ensuing safety and reliability; with the addition of a fashionable exterior, it is especially suitable for people to travel and vacation. Besides, the company also displayed its comprehensive solutions and successful cases on smart microgrid through brochures and other forms.

During the exhibition, an endless stream of local customers and exhibitors came to Zonergy booth. Customers expressed great interest in the company’s products and projects, and reached cooperation intentions on-site.

 Under the dual-carbon goal, the global energy structure and system are undergoing an in-depth transformation towards a clean, low-carbon and safe path, heralding a promising future for the PV storage field. Zonergy will continue to be driven by technological innovation, be customer-centered, provide high-quality products and comprehensive solutions, and jointly create a green future.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir)

The National Incubation Center and Coca-Cola celebrated International Women’s Day 2023 with an event focused on the day’s global theme: Embracing Equity.

The event focused on the issue of water equity with a specific emphasis on how it disproportionately affects women and children in Pakistan. It was noted that around 40% of Pakistan’s population lacks access to clean drinking water. The previous year’s floods worsened the situation, contaminating and making safe drinking water scarce. Rural women were particularly affected, having to travel long distances to collect water for their families. To address this issue, Coca-Cola partnered with Indus Earth Trust and Bondh E Shams to install a solar-powered water filtration system in Ali Muhammad Jokhio village, Thatta, which produces 10,000 liters of clean water every day. Additionally, innovative water wheels were provided to women to help ease the burden of carrying water. Safia and Asia, women of the Ali Muhammad Jhokio village were in attendance at the event and interacted with the audience sharing their perspectives and first-hand experience of the critical connection between women and access to safe drinking water.

The event featured a relevant and timely keynote by Senator and Minister of State for Petroleum Dr. Musadik Malik, serving as a critical bridge in the relationship between women, water, power and development.

In line with Coca-Cola’s global sustainability priorities, Aisha Sarwari, Director of Public Affairs, Communication, and Sustainability at The Coca-Cola Company, led a panel discussion on gender and climate action. The panel featured the perspectives of journalist Munizae Jahangir, Dr. Imran Khalid, Director of Policy and Governance at the WWF-Pakistan, and Rajaa Bokhari, Program Manager of Pakistan Business Council. The discussion highlighted the importance of gender equity and clean water and sanitation in achieving sustainable development goals of which gender equality (SDG 5) and clean water and sanitation (SDG 6) are among key priorities for Coca-Cola.  

“Women in Pakistan have faced systemic disadvantages and we believe in fixing the fundamentals first. Access to clean drinking water is a game changer, especially in times of natural disasters and climate change catastrophes.” said Aisha Sarwari, Director of Public Relations, Communications, and Sustainability.

Coca-Cola is committed to creating equal opportunities for women in our business and the communities they serve. Women bear a disproportionate impact of climate change, as evident from the floods in Pakistan, and they responded to International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Pakistan Business Council’s (PBC) Climate2Equal Call to Action, pledging to increase women’s involvement in consultations on water conservation and make them the main stakeholders in climate-focused interventions.

At the event, the National Incubation Center and Coca-Cola were also joined by startup WeCamp, a platform dedicated to supporting, and celebrating home-based female entrepreneurs. WeCamp held a panel discussion on “Female Inclusion in the Workforce”. The discussion, moderated by WeCamp’s CEO, Laiba Iqbal, featured journalist and founder of The MM Edit, Maria Memon, Aqsa Khan, CEO of Milma Trips, and Fozia Asim, home-based entrepreneur behind Saqafat. The panelists shared their experiences and discussed the challenges faced by women in the workplace, as well as best practices for promoting gender equality in the workforce.

Parvez Abbasi, Project Director, NIC Pakistan said; “On this Women’s Day, we applaud the courage and determination of women around the world, as they continue to overcome varied challenges. At the NIC we are immensely proud that 24% of our female founders are female. That’s compared to Silicon Valley where it’s a lot less. Still a long way to go!”.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)

Etihad Town recently organized an exciting event at Faletti’s Hotel to celebrate the onboarding of its new Strategic Sales Partners (SSP) who will have exclusive sales rights of the inventory in the company’s latest property project, Etihad Town – Phase II.

The SSPs are expected to engage with Platinum Dealers around the country to sell units in the existing and upcoming new projects of Etihad Group. They will additionally join Etihad Town on March 18 for the balloting of 3 & 5 marla residential plots and 5 marla commercial plots in Etihad Town Phase II — with interested buyers and investors expected to receive possession of their plots within 6 to 8 months.

The on boarding celebration at Faletti’s Hotel took place on Wednesday (March 8) and it provided an opportunity for the company’s partners, clients, and industry leaders to come together and celebrate this new collaboration in bringing a unique real estate experience to the market.

The event featured the sponsors of Etihad Town Phase II, Mr. Raheel Munir, Mr. Faisal Khokhar and Mr. Nabeel Khokhar, along with the company’s Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Sheikh Shuja Ullah Khan, who introduced the Etihad Town project on the occasion. In addition, representatives from the SSPs were also present at the event, including the Lion Group, Taqmeel Pvt Ltd, and Eithad Marketing from Lahore, and the Syed Brothers from Multan.

On the occasion, Mr. Faisal Khokhar stated that the Etihad Town project promised to be a game-changer in the real estate industry, and that he was delighted to have esteemed partners on board to join his company on this exciting journey. He further said that due to the project’s innovative designs, unparalleled amenities, and prime location, he was confident that it will set a new benchmark in the property market.

Regarding the event, the Chief Operating Officer Mr. Sheikh Shuja Ullah Khan of Etihad Town, said that he was thrilled to welcome new partners to the Etihad Town project. He stated that he had high expectations for this project, and that he was confident that the collective expertise and dedication of his company and their new strategic partners would lead to a successful outcome. He concluded by saying that his team was committed to ensuring a smooth onboarding process for their new partners, and that they looked forward to working together towards achieving their shared goals.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir) Dawlance is Pakistan’s leading producer of innovative home appliances and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arcelik – the 2nd largest manufacturer in Europe. The Chief Executive Officer of Dawlance – Mr. Umar Ahsan Khan recently held a meeting with a Senate Finance Committee, to highlight the adverse economic impact of the current interruption in Pakistan’s import trade.

The participants discussed critical issues; as the shortage of foreign-currency reserves in Pakistan, has driven the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to curtail the imports of many important commodities and goods, over the past many months. Even large-scale industries are not allowed to open LCs for importing raw materials essential for their operations. Dawlance’s shipments of raw materials and components have also been blocked, halting the manufacturing operations since January for all products that are not only sold locally but exported to other countries too.

Expressing his concerns about this crisis, Mr. Umar Ahsan Khan said: “Restrictions were placed on Dawlance’s imports, from May to August 2022, so we were not able to open any LCs for ‘Chapter 84 and 85 items’. From August till December 2022, we were instructed by the State Bank to work under a quota of 38% of our past year’s imports, forcing our company to reduce its production. Even this small quota was not received in full, or on time. On 27^th December, the SBP instructed all the banks to prioritize the LCs for essential items like; food, fuel, fertilizers, only”

The Government has been requested to consider Dawlance as a special case because most of its products are essential for food preservation and hygiene, so it is playing a key role in the well-being of common families and ensuring public health. Therefore, it may be categorized as an industry which allowed to import its raw materials for production. The Chairman committee Mr Saleem Mandviwalla asked the Governor of SBP to look into resolving the issues being faced by this very important Turkish investor in Pakistan.

Since its 100% acquisition by Arcelik, in 2016, Dawlance has not remitted out of Pakistan any dividend, royalty or technical fee to Arcelik. Dawlance pays approximately PKR 15 Billion annually, as duties and taxes to the Government of Pakistan, besides providing employment to more than 4,500 Pakistanis. The company is transferring technologies and contributing great value to Pakistan’s socioeconomic growth and sustainability.

Pakistan Government must understand that clear and consistent, long-term policies and a business-friendly environment are needed to attract and retain foreign investments, for the sake of stabilizing the national economy, during these challenging times. Dawlance is committed to play a pivotal role in implementing the “Make in Pakistan” policy.

• Huawei MetaAAU Wins ‘Best Mobile Network Infrastructure’ Award.
• Huawei RuralLink Wins ‘Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets’ Award.
• Huawei FDD Beamforming Series Wins ‘Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough’ Award.
• Huawei Wins ‘5G Industry Challenge Award’ for a 5G Fully-Connected Factory in Jingzhou alongside Midea and China Mobile.

 

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir) During the Mobile World Congress (MWC) that was recently held in Barcelona 2023, Huawei bagged a number of significant awards in various categories at GSMA’s Global Mobile (GLOMO) Awards.

Judged by the sector’s most prominent subject matter experts, GLOMO Awards are the industry’s most prestigious accolade that celebrate the companies, individuals and governments who have driven the greatest innovation in mobile and adjacent industries.

The company was awarded ‘Best Mobile Network Infrastructure’ for its MetaAAU series. This award recognizes Huawei’s long-term breakthroughs in Massive-MIMO with its innovative products that help build 5G networks with optimal performance and energy efficiency, industry’s simplest deployment, and industry’s strongest evolution capabilities.

The MetaAAU series is Huawei’s third-generation AAU products, including MetaAAU and Meta BladeAAU. This portfolio is the first-of-its-class to introduce the ELAA (Extremely Large Antenna Array) technology to open a new green track for Massive MIMO, and is the optimal solution for improving 5G coverage, capacity, and energy efficiency. Compared with the second-generation AAUs which use 192 antenna arrays, MetaAAU doubles the antenna array scale, uses narrower beams, and provides more focused energy. Combined with the unique AHR Turbo (Adaptive High-Resolution) beamforming algorithm, uplink and downlink coverage is improved by 3 dB, user experience is improved by 30%, and energy consumption is reduced by 30%. MetaAAU boosts both network performance and energy efficiency. It is a new direction for Massive MIMO innovation and a new path for stronger and greener 5G evolution.

In another category, Midea, China Mobile, and Huawei were named winners of the ‘5G Industry Challenge Award in collaboration with the GSMA 5G Hub’ for the 5G fully-connected laundry appliance factory project — the largest of its kind the world has ever seen — that they built together in Jingzhou, a major industrial city in China’s central Hubei province. This award recognizes the extensive application of 5G technologies to smart manufacturing.

Midea Group is a Guangdong-based leading electrical appliance manufacturer and plays a pioneering role in bringing 5G to manufacturing. With advanced mobile solutions provided by China Mobile and Huawei, it has built the world’s first 5G fully-connected factory in the home appliance sector. This is the first time that 5G has been fully applied to all industrial production and business operations. In this smart factory, 5G connections have been applied across 15 scenarios and all production links are seamlessly connected through 5G devices. To date, this is the industry’s largest 5G application in industrial campuses, with the largest number of 5G devices used and the most comprehensive use of 5G for production. The project has seen 5G replace complex cabling between machines in the factory, improving workplace safety and allowing machines to operate automatically for higher productivity.

Additionally, Huawei’s FDD Beamforming series took home the ‘Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough’. This award recognizes Huawei’s continuous work to create simplified ultra-wideband, precise multi-antenna beamforming, and green solutions. Huawei’s revolutionary beamforming products are helping operators across the globe build best-in-class 5G networks that feature the ultimate performance, lowest energy consumption, optimal user experience, and strongest evolution capability.

Huawei FDD beamforming series products consist of Massive MIMO, 8T8R, and Hertz antennas. Thanks to its exclusive intelligent beamforming algorithm, these products can flexibly support 4G and 5G beams. FDD Massive MIMO provides up to five-fold spectral efficiency, meeting operators’ requirements for capacity growth in hotspots. 8T8R is designed for FDD medium bands. It provides capacity- and experience-based solutions that can be widely deployed, and tackles issues like 4G congestion and poor indoor 5G experience. Compared with 4T4R, 8T8R brings three times the spectral efficiency, helping operators build experience.

The ‘Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets’ award was another award Huawei received for RuralLink — Green, Simplified, and Evolvable Solution for Rural Connectivity, proving that Huawei’s continuous innovation in scenario-based coverage solutions for remote areas has been well recognized by the industry.

Around 40% of the world’s population still have no access to mobile Internet, and among those, hundreds of millions of people living in very remote areas are not even covered by mobile broadband networks. This has set the stage for Huawei to explore innovations that are able to expand mobile broadband to connect the unconnected while also being able to provide good experience.

Huawei’s RuralLink solution uses innovative unique technologies to address challenges in rural communications, and provides ubiquitous coverage with ultra-low cost and power consumption. This solution is the industry’s first to use microwave fronthaul technology. Rural sites can share baseband resources of existing base stations, eliminating the need to deploy independent baseband units. One RRU and one Channel Expand Antenna are capable of achieving three-sector coverage. Not only that, there is no longer a requirement for BBUs, which further reduces site power consumption. Only 4 PV modules are needed for supplying power to the entire site. With one-off deployment, RuralLink can currently support 2G, 3G, and 4G services and can evolve to 5G, providing long-term experience-guaranteed coverage for rural areas.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir) 

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Careem announces plans to launch a new women-driven motorbike service, catering exclusively to its female customers. The service will commence in Karachi and make its way to other cities in Pakistan. Careem welcomes registrations from women who are interested in working as a female Captain to access flexible income opportunities.

The service includes two models – part time (5 hours) and full time (10 hours) – for which Careem guarantees a monthly payment of PKR 30,000 and PKR 50,000 respectively. In addition to this, Careem is offering female motorbike Captains 0% commission, bonuses and guarantees as well as priority access to Careem’s safety and security helpline. Women interested in the service can visit the DHA or Gulshan Careem opportunity centre or visit the Careem Captain facebook page.

Currently, more than 1,700 female Captains drive Careem customers across multiple car types on the platform. In recent developments, Careem is incentivizing all its female Captains across all car types by offering special bonuses, making it further lucrative for them to work on the platform.

Careem’s new women-driven motorbike service enables Careem’s large female customer base to access affordable yet safe and reliable transport in an environment of rising inflation, especially everyday office and university goers. It also enables and empowers women in Pakistan society to access flexible income generating options and achieve financial stability as Captains.

Commenting on the new service, Imran Saleem, General Manager – Ride Hailing at Careem Pakistan, stated, “Women are an integral part of our society and constitute a large number of our overall customer base. Careem’s women-driven motorbike service will help our female customers to break barriers through access to safe, reliable and affordable transport. This affordable transport is particularly needed during such challenging economic times which have made it harder for families to run households on a single income. We’re proud to help create additional income opportunities in Pakistan.”

The new service supports Careem’s purpose to simplify and improve the lives of people and build an awesome organisation that inspires. It also supports Careem’s ongoing commitment to empower women in Pakistan. By equipping female drivers with the tools and resources they need to succeed, the organisation is enabling women to reclaim public spaces and take control of their own futures.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir)

Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) has once again been adjudged as one of the largest corporate givers by volume of donations for 2020-21 and 2021-22 by Pakistan Centre for Philanthropy (PCP). This is the 18^th consecutive year since 2004 that the company has maintained this philanthropic tradition.  

General Manager Shared Services PPL Syed Mahmood ul Hassan received the award from Chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan Akif Saeed at a distinguished ceremony organized by PCP at Marriott Hotel, Karachi attended by business leaders, civil society officials, bilateral donors and media.

PPL continues to uphold its seven-decades old legacy of sharing the benefits of development with deserving communities. The company’s CSR programme reaches deserving communities, from remote operational areas to urban centres across the country, to improve their quality of life. For this, the company works with reputable development organizations on need-based projects in education, healthcare, livelihood generation, infrastructure development, post-disaster relief and rehabilitation. PPL’s CSR budget during 2020-21 crossed two-billion-rupee mark which is a record.

________________________________________________________________________________

Caption: General Manager Shared Services PPL Syed Mahmood ul Hassan (second left) receives Corporate Philanthropy Award from Chairman, SECP Akif Saeed on March 7 at a distinguished ceremony organized by PCP in Karachi.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)

Punjab Central Business District Development Authority (PCBDDA), also known as Central Business District Punjab (CBD Punjab), has participated in the Jashan E Baharan celebration organized by the Government of Punjab, which is being carried out all over the province from March 4, 2023, till March 14, 2023. The authority has created a magnificent float that has taken the roads of Lahore. Along with the model of Minar E Pakistan, which represents the freedom and excellence of the country, the float also showcases the signature projects of CBD Punjab, including SIRIUS, The Runway, and The Regalia. The float is a symbol of progressive Punjab and reflects the initiatives of the authority for the development of the province. It is covered with flowers that exhibit the colors of spring and projects positivity and betterment of the most populous province of Pakistan. CEO of CBD Punjab, Mr. Imran Amin, expressed his pleasure and said, “As a responsible authority, we believe in actively engaging with the community and contributing to its growth and development. This event is an excellent opportunity for us to showcase our commitment to the development of Punjab and to celebrate the rich cultural heritage of our province. The signature projects showcased on the float are a testament to CBD Punjab’s commitment of developing modern infrastructure. SIRIUS will be a mixed-use tallest skyscraper in Punjab. The Runway will be a commercial strip that will feature a mix of retail, entertainment, and dining options. Regalia is a luxury residential project which will offer premium living spaces in the heart of Lahore. The float is a symbol of a developing Punjab and is a treat for the citizens of Lahore who are thrilled to see the float on the roads and are impressed by its magnificent colors and lights.