Category: Business

Pakistan (Nut Desk)

The announcement from the Ministry of Finance last week that it will advise the State Bank of Pakistan and National Bank to withdraw their appeal against the Federal Shariat Court’s decree to convert to an Islamic financial system comes as a welcome step. Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, announced that the government will be moving ahead to ensure the conversion to Islamic instruments by 2027 and has already initiated the process.

 The Federal Shariat Court, in April 2022, had taken Faysal Bank’s example of a smooth transition to Islamic Financial Instruments (IFIs) as a strong model to follow and asked all banks in Pakistan to switch from the conventional model to the Islamic instruments to make Pakistan’s economy Riba-free. The following weeks saw many appeals being filed in the Supreme Court to stall or delay the process. The recent decision of the GoP to withdraw the appeal ensures the expedition of this journey towards a unified Islamic financial system in the country.

While appreciating the decision by the Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, as potentially conducive to a better and stronger economy and Pakistan’s financial future, Yousaf Hussain, President & CEO, Faysal Bank Limited, stated, “Faysal Bank, having embarked on and now being on the verge conversion from a conventional to an Islamic Bank, is poised to assume the lead role within Pakistan’s banking and financial sector to facilitate the complete conversion from interest-based banking to a Shariah-compliant banking system.”

 He further added that the national-level conversion, though a challenge, will be a game changer for Pakistan in enabling Riba-free economic progress. It has worked well, he said, in enabling Faysal Bank the expansion to almost 700 branches, including new customers, from previously unbanked segments of the population. A proud fact to note was the continuity of work, as throughout the process, not a single branch was closed, and neither was any day marked off. And all this while ensuring ongoing training and development to equip the FBL team with the requisite qualifications and skills. With this transformation, Faysal Bank has created a blueprint that can now be shared by the State Bank of Pakistan as a reference index. He expressed his gratitude to the Board, Senior Management, and employees of the bank for their resolve and commitment to this noble journey.

A special thank you, he said, is owed to the State Bank of Pakistan, and it’s Governor Jamil Ahmed, for their ongoing and unwavering support and for providing continuous access. The guidance from Shariah scholars was and will always remain the beacon for this journey onwards.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) If you’re looking to upgrade your mobile device then look no further than Pakistan’s biggest sale, Daraz 11:11. Xiaomi Pakistan’s most popular mobile devices and eco products are available at a substantial discount on Daraz giving you the best deals of the year. The sale will last till November 21, 2022, but if you are late and stock runs out, then don’t worry you’ll find that Xiaomi’s Mi Store has the same offers available.

The Redmi 10C is now available for Rs. 31,999, the 64GB Redmi 10A is now available for Rs. 24,699, the 128GB Redmi 10A is now available for Rs. 27,999 and the Redmi Note 11 is now available for a low price of Rs. 42,499.

Equipped with features that provide value to your purchase Xiaomi has gone above and beyond to deliver high-quality products at a lower price. So what are you waiting for grab your new upgrade before the time runs out.

Lahore (Nut Desk) An emerging Pakistani food sector group, Fair Marketing Pakistan (FMP), has been awarded 2nd position in the ISM Expo Dubai (Confectionary & Snacks Exhibition) recently held in the United Arab Emirates. FMP Group’s product ‘NutriGulten Free’ was given the 2nd best product award at this three day food industry related fair. The Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) Executive Committee member and FMP Group’s co-owner Muhammad Ejaz Tanveer thanking the almighty on this achievement of his company said that he strictly believe that solution of all the financial problems faced by Pakistan lies in exporting more to fetch more valuable foreign exchange. He said it is an honour and moment of proud for whole of the nation especially Pakistan’s food industry that one of their product has been acknowledged internationally.

Pakistan (Nut Desk)

NdcTech was the only IT company from Pakistan to exhibit its offerings at Singapore Fintech Festival 2022. Sakina Tahir and Hiba Hashim were also participants in the FinTech Meet and Greet at the Pakistan High Commission in Singapore.

Singapore FinTech Festival is one of the largest FinTech festivals bringing together the global FinTech community to engage, connect, and collaborate on issues relating to the development of financial services, public policy, and technology.

The festival was organized by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Elevandi, and Constellar in collaboration with the Association of Banks in Singapore.  

NdcTech is an award-winning partner of Temenos, working with 100+ banks globally and possess a rich history of 22 years, bringing innovative offerings to clients seeking to strengthen their banking capabilities.

NdcTech is a subsidiary of Systems Limited.

• Network Carbon Intensity energy (NCIe) metric introduced to evaluate network energy efficiency.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir) A Huawei executive said on Thursday that information and communications technologies, or ICT, will enable the digitalization of industry, spark innovation and make other industries green. The remarks were made at a session organized by the Global Innovation Hub (UGIH) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at the ongoing 27th Conference of the Parties, or COP27, in Sharm El-Sheikh of Egypt. Referring to what is known as the “enabling effect”, Philippe Wang, Huawei’s Executive Vice President for the Northern Africa region, said ICT is “making other industries greener”. “5G, Artificial Intelligence, data analytics, cloud computing – all these things will improve industrial processes in a way that cuts energy use, and lowers carbon emissions,” he said. According to Philippe Wang, in the same way that ICT enables a smart streetlight to turn itself off when no one is around, 5G wireless base stations can automatically shut down when there is no data traffic, which saves energy. Base stations need a power source and have antennas. For its part, Huawei has been replacing diesel generators with solar panels, which offer a cleaner source of electric power, in Nigeria and Angola. At the same time, the company has launched a green 5G antenna that covers an area of up to 500 meters area using half the transmission power. That cuts energy consumption by 30 percent. Also speaking at the session on Thursday, Luis Neves, CEO, Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative (GeSI), stressed that digital should be at the core of the climate conversation. “If you bring a sustainability mindset together with digital, I think we can create a powerful machine to drive the sustainability agenda and accelerate the path for a world where 10 billion people can live a healthy life. And businesses should take both their carbon footprint and handprint into consideration,” he said. To this end, members of the ITU-T, including Huawei, have proposed a standard for measuring network energy use. Known as the Network Carbon Intensity energy metric, the standard was approved by ITU-T on October 19 as the Recommendation ITU-T L.1333. According to Nompilo Morafo, MTN Group Chief Sustainability & Corporate Affairs Officer, “sustainable, measurable action” holds the key to meeting net zero goals. “In this journey, the use of digital technologies offers particular potential to increase the generation of green energy and power efficiency of all industries,” she added. The UNFCCC UGIH session, titled ICT for Green, addressed the ways in which transformative ICT technology could be utilized to enable the green development of a wide range of industries, facilitating the world’s path to net-zero emissions.

Pak-Qatar General Takaful Limited and Hefazat Technologies came into an Agreement aiming to introduce innovative General Takaful Products

Pak-Qatar General Takaful Limited (PQGTL) and Hefazat Technologies held an agreement signing ceremony on 14^th October 2022 with an aim to introduce new products that will give customers greater flexibility in acquiring Takaful to protect their purchases in the event of an unfortunate incident. Mr. Muhammad Kashif (SVP – Head of Digital, PQGTL) and Mr. Ali Rehman (Business Partner, Hefazat Technologies) signed the agreement along with senior officials of both companies including Mr. Saqib Zeeshan (Deputy CEO, PQGTL), Muhammad Shoaib Akhtar (SEVP – Operations, PQGTL), Imtiaz Noor Mohammad, Product Manager for Hefazat Technologies.

While expressing his views at the signing ceremony, Mr. Saqib Zeeshan (Deputy CEO, PQGTL) said, “Pak-Qatar General Takaful is committed to bringing innovative and need-based Takaful Products to the masses in order to make a long-term positive impact not just in the lives of individuals but across the society as well. This collaboration is a step towards our shared vision of customer centricity and providing unmatched services to deliver a pleasant experience.”

Mr. Ali Rehman, while sharing his viewpoint said, “It is great to have partners that share common goal and vision. Our desire to digitize Takaful and enable it in the consumers’ lives in a convenience driven way is shared by the leadership at Pak-Qatar. We look forward to building more innovative solutions with the continued support of the team at Pak Qatar to add value to the lives of consumers across Pakistan.”

Sehat Kahani partnered with Akhuwat to make healthcare accessible to underprivileged and low-income communities.

Sehat Kahani signed an agreement with Akhuwat to benefit directly or indirectly five million people with sound digital healthcare services.

In order to provide patients with online chat, audio and video-enabled instant or on-appointment consultations, and online diagnostics, Sehat Kahani created a one-window digital healthcare platform. Through their service lines, patients in underprivileged and difficult-to-reach locations can connect with doctors through a mobile application and intermediary-assisted telemedicine facilitation centers.

The largest interest-free micro-finance organization in the world, Akhuwat, is committed to enhancing the lives of the underprivileged, particularly those who are financially mistreated, neglected, and ignored by society. As a recognized non-governmental organization, Akhuwat offers interest-free loans to the underprivileged so they can acquire the means of support, education, and employment necessary to realize their full potential.

Having the primary aim of making healthcare more accessible, Sehat Kahani has partnered with Akhuwat and to announce that agreement to the world, which was held on 8^th November 2022 in Lahore. This partnership aims to directly or indirectly benefit 5 million people of underprivileged communities by providing them with quality healthcare digitally.

Dr. Amjad Saqib, Chairman & Founder Akhuwat, expressed his hopes for this partnership by saying;

“The Islamic idea of Mawakhat, or brotherhood, serves as an inspiration for Akhuwat. When Islam originally emerged, the people of Madina gave the first public demonstration of Mawakhat by giving a portion of their income to the Meccan muhajirin. With increasing inflation, healthcare is becoming a luxury for low-income communities, and to cater to that, I believe our partnership with Sehat Kahani is going to immensely help.”

Furthermore, Dr. Sara Saeed Khurram, CEO and Co-founder of Sehat Kahani added,

“Having the mission to democratize healthcare access for all using digitally enabled primary care doctors, expertise and services, Sehat Kahani has always worked to make healthcare more and more accessible to the masses. To achieve great things, collaboration is important, and with great empathy and anticipation, I am looking forward to this partnership with Akhuwat.”

About Sehat Kahani: Sehat Kahani, founded by Dr. Sara Saeed Khurram and Dr. Iffat Zafar Aga, is a telemedicine platform that strives to connect online doctors to patients using chat, audio, and video consultation at affordable rates. Sehat Kahani has been committed to providing quality and affordable healthcare to the people of Pakistan, especially to those who lack sound access to it in rural areas.

 

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) Chairman NEPRA, Tauseef H. Farooqi, commended the second cohort of KE’s Roshni Baji program for their contribution in promoting a culture of safety across Karachi’s most densely populated neighborhoods. These remarks were made during a meeting with the graduating batch held at KE’s Distribution Network Academy with Chief Distribution Officer, Amer Zia, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Sadia Dada and Chief People Officer, Muhammad Rizwan Dalia.

Between the 2 cohorts, 100 women have been part of the Roshni Baji program since its inception in February 2021. The program was conceived to drive awareness among communities on the best practices for safe usage of electricity and its conservation and allow KE’s female customers in these areas – who primarily reside at home – access to the utility as well. Through their efforts, these women have educated over 460,000 households to date across Lyari, Baldia, Korangi, Malir, Shah Faisal, Bin Qasim, Surjani, Orangi, and others. Their intervention also enabled the conversion of almost 30,000 illegal connections to legalized, metered electricity users. In recognition, this initiative won the prestigious S&P Global Platts Energy Award under the Corporate Social Responsibility – Diversified Program Category.

Chairman NEPRA, Tauseef H. Farooqi congratulated the Roshni Baji program on their success. “This initiative that you are a part of is a unique program which is also the only one of its kind in the world. Safety is a core tenet of NEPRA’s philosophy, and we are pleased to share that our attention and efforts have improved the system to a point where despite heavy rainfall in the city this past monsoon season, the safety of the public was guaranteed and not a single electrocution incident was reported.”

Addressing the audience, he also stated, “With this training, you now have acquired new skills and the brand name of Roshni Baji associated with you. I encourage you all to keep your efforts up and never limit yourself. It is a huge credit to your families who have supported you on your journey as well, and if you keep working with passion and dedication, there is no limit to what you will be able to achieve.”

This initiative is also part of KE’s vision to partner, empower and uplift residents from low-income neighborhoods in line with the company’s own commitments to the United Nations Sustainability Goals (SDG-5) that seek to achieve gender equality and women empowerment by the year 2030. Under the program, the Roshni Bajis are also being trained as Pakistan’s first certified female electricians capable of completing the single-phase wiring of any premises. They have also undergone training in financial literacy and self-defense.

Chief Marketing and Communications Officer KE, Sadia Dada welcomed “We are grateful to NEPRA for providing Pakistan’s energy sector with the vision of ‘Power with Prosperity’ under which the Roshni Baji Program was developed. We truly believe that these initiatives are a way of driving grassroots engagement and developing a safety culture in our communities. NEPRA has been a constant source of guidance and support, and we look forward to taking this program further in the future.”

Award Winning Design

TECNO’s Camon 19 Pro Mondrian edition is a pinnacle of engineering. This phone was designed to change its color under direct sunlight using sophisticated photo chromatic isomer technology, which elevates its design substantially. The 19 Pro Mondrian edition takes heavy inspiration from Mondrian Artwork. For its tribute to Mondrian Art and the clever use of technology for the color-changing back, this handset was awarded the IF and MUSE Design Awards. Apart from the back design, the Camon 19 Pro has a sleek look, as it proudly sports the world’s slimmest bezels at 0.98mm. The ergonomic grip makes this phone very comfortable to hold and use and makes it pleasant to use daily.

Best Camera Module in its Segment

The design language was not the only thing that won this phone widespread acclaim. The Camera Module is praiseworthy in itself, as there is a fusion of many sophisticated technologies and lenses to create one of the best camera setups in this price segment. The primary 64MP camera sensor features an RGBW (G+P), which features a white lens. The white lens absorbs white light to give your pictures more life. During nighttime photography, this white lens allows for brighter pictures. There is a 50MP lens for the sharpest portrait pictures. The Camon 19 Pro also has 2X optical zoom for the portrait lens, which allows you to zoom in without compromising the quality of the pictures. The 32MP selfie camera has a super high-resolution lens, which allows you to take crisp selfies.

Apart from these features, there are many photography modes and features. Camera Pro Mode allows you to adjust various aspects of your camera, like Autofocus, sensitivity, and white balance. For nighttime photography, there is a dedicated Super Night Time mode for the brightest and sharpest low-light pictures. The AI tools in the camera setup also let you artificially enhance your pictures.

High-End Performance

Of course, we all know that without optimum performance and battery life, features alone cannot make the phone stand out. Hence, TECNO thought of this and fitted the Camon 19 Pro with a 5000 mAh battery, which also supports fast charging using a 33W fast charger. This phone also boasts a 120HZ refresh rate, which would help you during your gameplay and make it smooth. A 120 HZ refresh rate allows you to scroll through your browser effortlessly. The Camon 19 Pro also sports an extended 8GB ram for efficient multitasking. The Camon 19 Pro also offers a MediaTek Helio G96 processor, which means a very smooth experience.

The Camon 19 Pro and 19 Pro Mondrian Edition are available in Pakistan’s offline and online markets. The Camon 19 Pro is available for PKR 49,999, while the 19 Pro Mondrian edition is priced at PKR 51,999.

Pakistan (Muhammad Yasir)

After last year’s success, OPPO, the leading global smart device brand, is back again with its mega collaboration with Pakistan’s biggest e-commerce platform Daraz for their annual 11:11 sale. The Daraz 11:11 sale has become one of the most sought-after and popular sales in Pakistan, as it caters to millions of shoppers each year.

OPPO has always excelled in producing innovative products that impresses and delivers. So with a bigger and better range of IoT products on sale at Daraz 11:11, now is the best time to upgrade into a smart lifestyle with your favourite OPPO products.

OPPO’s ever-evolving technological vision has allowed it to expand its horizons in the IoT ecosystem and it is excelling with predominant finesse. The company’s drive to expand its portfolio into the IoT market has allowed it to blend state-of-the-art technologies with aesthetically pleasing designs to support customers in living smart and productive lives.

This technological powerhouse being one of the premium sponsors of Daraz has showcased an elegant range of products ranging from Smartphones, Bluetooth Speakers, Power Banks, Smart Watches, and much more. Among these devices is OPPO Reno6 Pro with its Reno Glow design, Bokeh Flare photography and 50W Flash Charge.

OPPO strives to stay ahead of the game by creating innovative gadgets that are centered on user experience. Therefore, the two products dominating the shelves of 11:11 sale are the OPPO Watch 41mm and OPPO Watch 46mm with price cuts of up to PKR 10,000/- and PKR 20,000/- respectively. Meanwhile, the company’s earbuds OPPO ENCO Air and wristbands OPPO Band Style are also available for sale.

You can avail these discounted prices on the Daraz 11.11 sale starting 11th November till 21st November, available exclusively on the Daraz app and website. Mark your dates and be ready.

Check out all the OPPO products available at discount by clicking here!