News Update Times

Master Changan Motors Signs Contract with Orient Power System to install a 2.5MW Solar Power Project

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)  Leading automobile company Master Changan Motors Company Limited (MCML) is proud to announce it has signed a contract with Orient Power System for installing a 2.5MW solar power project at its Changan production facility at Port Qasim Karachi. Bank Al Habib has been nominated as the lead banking arranger for this project.

The project will initiate a Green Automotive Manufacturing Revolution at Master Changan Motors by helping the sustainability of its energy mix and, at the same time, reducing its carbon footprint and the burden on the national grid.

Samir Malik, COO of MCML, said: “In recent years, Pakistan has been one of the most adversely impacted countries by global warming, severely affecting the weather patterns resulting in flooding, heat waves, a water crisis and much more. Pakistan has also faced an energy deficit of huge proportions, which has crippled the manufacturing industry, hindered growth rates, and impacted the lives and livelihood of people.

At Master Changan Motors we deeply care about the well-being of our community, environment and future generations. It is our vision to be Pakistan’s first Green Automotive Manufacturer by becoming a carbon neutral company by 2025.

This 2.5 MW solar power project is one of the largest adoption of renewable energy among the automotive manufacturers in Pakistan. It is being installed for self-consumption, producing approximately 3.5 million units of clean and renewable electricity every year, which will result in a significant drop in MCML’s carbon footprint. Making Changan vehicles one of the most sustainably produced vehicles in Pakistan.”

Master Changan Motors Company Limited is an ISO-certified automobile assembling manufacturing company formed in 2018 and is part of the Master Group of Industries. Master Group of Industries is one of the oldest, most trusted and loved brands of Pakistan since 1963. It caters to a variety of sectors: mattress, and sleep industry – Master MoltyFoam & Master Celeste, office furniture and services – MasterOffisys, textile – Master Textiles, power generation – MasterWind Energy, chemicals – Master Thermoshield, and automotive – Master Motor and Procon Engineering.  

Master Motor has seen major success in the automotive industry since 2002 and has successfully introduced the renowned brands such as Foton, Mitsubishi Fuso, and Yutong Master. The company has since continued to satisfy customer demands across various segments of light, medium and heavy duty trucks, and busses. Master Changan Motors Limited acquired Greenfield Status under the Auto Policy 2016-2021, a joint venture between Master Motor and Changan automobile with an initial investment of $100 million – the largest investment of its kind by an OEM in Pakistan’s history. The JV further invested $36 million to introduce the Alsvin in Pakistan and aims to bring in more exciting models by June 2021.

Changan is China’s No.1 domestic automotive brand consecutively for the last 10 years. The company invests 5% of its annual revenues in R&D giving it the best capability in automotive technology this has allowed them to introduce Level 3 Autonomous Driving in China. Changan has a wide range of beautifully designed and high-quality sedans, SUVs, MVPs, LCVs and is well on its way to electrifying all its models by 2022. In their next phase, Master Changan Motors plans to introduce these electric vehicles in Pakistan as well.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Nearly eight in ten merchants (79%) of small businesses in Pakistan that were surveyed believe digital payments is an important investment in their business recovery, according to a new study by Visa (NYSE: V), the world leader in digital payments. Two in three small businesses (63%) surveyed say they feel optimistic about business recovery in 2021.

The ‘2021 Small Business Recovery’ study surveyed small and medium businesses (SMBs) in Pakistan, UAE, KSA and Egypt to understand how they have evolved the way they do business to manage the impact of the coronavirus on their bottom line. The study also revealed the key spending trends that merchants believe define the COVID-19 business environment – these include increased use of contactless payments (58% of merchants), takeaways (81%) and home delivery (40%). Merchants in Pakistan expect all of these spending trends to continue to grow post-pandemic, and 74% of merchants are confident that online shopping will remain a preference well after the crisis.

When asked about payment habits during the pandemic, more than half of merchants surveyed in Pakistan (55%) said card payments (chip and PIN) were the preferred payment option among their customers.More than one-third of merchants surveyed said they established digital presence (36%) and implemented home delivery and pickup services (43%). Nearly half introduced new product services/offerings (47%) to attract and retain more customers while59% witnessed an increased use of loyalty programs.

Another interesting finding that stood out in Pakistan was that 7 in 10 (71%) merchants surveyed showed commitment to their communities by giving back in the form of donations or providing free products and services to those in need during the pandemic.

Commenting on the findings of the ‘2021 Small Business Recovery’ study, Kamil Khan, Visa’s Country Manager for Pakistan, said, “It’s encouraging to see that merchants are optimistic about business recovery in 2021 and the swift adoption of digital payments and recognition of what their customers want- whether it’s establishing a digital presence, introducing eCommerce platform, offering new products or home delivery – has been pivotal in them shifting gears from survival mode to recovery. Considering that 7 out of 10 small business owners rely on their business as their primary source of income, it is imperative for these businesses to move to digital payments and strengthen digital offerings sooner rather than later. At Visa, we continue to work in lockstep with our bank and industry partners to support local merchants’ urgent recovery needs.”

The experience of the pandemic has highlighted the need to future proof. In order to prepare for future uncertainties, 31%of Pakistani merchants surveyed who currently do not have an online presence said they are planning to build an eCommerce platform and more than 50% are planning to offer contactless payments and digital prepayment options to customers.  One-third of merchants surveyed (34%) said they believe accepting digital payments is likely to increase their sales. In fact, merchants who only accept cash are planningto invest in new digital payment technologies (33%) and set up POS terminals within the next two years (26%).

Whilst the majority of merchants in Pakistan recognize the importance of digital acceptance, the complexity of use or staff training (35%), and delay in refund if requested by consumers (22%) remain a concern for surveyed merchants. 

Essam El Daly, Visa’s Senior Director of Merchant Sales and Acquisition – MENA, said: “At Visa, our top priority is to help small businesses keep pace and adapt to operate in a world that is rapidly evolving. These findings give us insight into what the barriers are for merchants as they transition to digital and reinforce our strategy to provide practical help for SMBs to access a trusted pool of educational tools and technologies such as low-cost acceptance solutions. As a trusted engine of commerce, Visa intends to continue to roll out new programs and resources that address the pain points of SMBs and help them embrace digitization and thrive in the new normal.”

‘2021 Small Business Recovery’ study was done to understand where small businesses are in their recovery. For this, Visa commissioned 4SiGHT Research & Analytics to survey small businesses in the UAE, KSA, Egypt and Pakistan. The methodology consisted of 15 minute interviews with over 150 merchants in each market and within key segments ranging from food to fashion to travel. The surveys were conducted December 8-20, 2020.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Mr. Ali Nawaz Awan Special Assistant to Prime Minister for CDA Affairs inaugurated a rehabilitated water filtration facility in Islamabad. The refurbishment was facilitated by the international non-governmental organization, WaterAid, with support from global food and beverage company, PepsiCo. It is expected that approximately 9,000 people from and around Saidpur Village will directly benefit from the new facility.

This project is under PepsiCo’s commitment to the Clean and Green Pakistan Initiative launched by the Prime Minister of Pakistan. To support the ‘access to safe water’ pillar of the Clean and Green Pakistan Initiative, PepsiCo is working with WaterAid to provide safe water through extensive addition and refurbishments of water filtration plants.

Speaking at the inauguration Special Assistant to Prime Minister for CDA Affairs, Mr. Ali Nawaz Awan said, “There is nothing more essential than access to safe water. I appreciate this important collaboration between PepsiCo and WaterAid in supporting the Government in ensuring access to safe water to marginalized communities in the capital.”

Mr. Mohammad Khosa, Senior Director at PepsiCo said, “Access to safe water is essential for public health. In partnership with WaterAid, we are on a mission to enable access to safe water for communities across the country and specially for those impacted by the rapid urbanization we are experiencing. This is in line with our global commitment to provide access to safe water to 100 million people by 2030.’

Mr. Siddiq Khan Country Representative WaterAid Pakistan commented, “WaterAid Pakistan is committed to supporting Clean Green Pakistan Initiative by the Government of Pakistan and are happy that through this collaboration with PepsiCo we were able to reach vulnerable populations residing in the urban areas. PepsiCo and WaterAid Pakistan will continue to take initiative to provide access to safe water as part of the Clean Green Pakistan Movement.”

Increasing access to safe water is part of PepsiCo’s focus on continuing to integrate purpose into its business strategy and brands to become PepsiCo Positive – to deliver better outcomes for people and the planet, whilst enabling it to be a faster-growing and more resilient company. Through partnerships funded by The PepsiCo Foundation, the company’s philanthropic arm, PepsiCo has helped more than 55 million people gain access to safe water globally since 2006 and catalyzed nearly $700 million in additional funding to support safe water access investments in partnership with leading non-profits worldwide. The milestone marks significant progress towards PepsiCo’s goal of reaching 100 million people with safe water by 2030.

PMIC launches the ‘Institution Development Fund’ for financial services startups in underserved areas

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company Limited (PMIC), the country’s foremost organization serving as a vital pillar to the National Financial Inclusion Strategy, recently set up and launched its “Institution Development Fund” to provide support to the companies that would not normally meet PMIC’s financing requirements. PMIC has always encouraged greater ingenuity, innovation, and correlation to the communities that it serves.

Designed with an inclusive approach in mind, the Institution Development Fund encourages lending for new organizations that work on women’s financial inclusion, provision of financial services in KPK and Balochistan, and even for startups that deploy digital financial services and have developed mechanisms and technologies to reduce cost of delivery of financial services. PMIC aims to create an enabling environment for the multiplicity of communities where it operates, while leading and advocating for a brighter future.

This is yet another welcome step by PMIC to encourage new players to participate more actively in bringing about financial inclusion, and to facilitate the provision of financial services to underserved communities across Pakistan. Startups and organizations in their nascent stages in Pakistan are in need of an institution or source of funding that supports them and offers them the path to prosperity, and the “Institution Development Fund” has been tailor-made to cater specifically to those companies.

“PMIC firmly believes in a proactive approach to the exploration and development of new business models and delivery mechanisms in order to truly realize its purpose of enabling a financially inclusive Pakistan”, CEO, PMIC, Mr. YasirAshfaq commented while highlighting what his organization stands for. “PMIC is making dreams come true and energizing livelihoods around the country, in addition to its efforts in enhancing outreach in underserved areas”.

Through PMIC’s network of more than 23 Microfinance Providers in more than 65 districts of Pakistan, more than 80% of the borrowers are women. PMIC also focuses development of women centric financial products and initiatives leading to financial inclusion, financial literacy, empowerment and sustainable livelihoods for women contributing towards achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 and the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS).