News Update Times

Lahore:Congratulations to the first batch of WomenOnWheels! Reckitt Benckiser and Government of Punjab join hands on WomenOnWheels to empower women trainees, their mobility and access to adequate job opportunities. We are hoping for more such opportunities for the coming batches. The public-private partnership is an initiative where Reckitt Benckiser had partnered to enable mobility and empowerment for women across Pakistan!

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)  As reported in the media, a tragic fire broke out on Friday, 11^th May 2018 at the production facility of Waves factory Pakistan. By the grace of God Almighty and the timely protective measures taken by the administration, there were no casualties.  The initial assessment of the cause of fire outbreak was short circuiting. The fire initiated at the dispatch area and engulfed various parts of the production facility where some of the finished products were placed.

Most of the production machinery remained safe. Since raw materials and most of the finished goods inventory were stored in off-site warehouses, all these were unharmed. The assets damaged by the fire had been fully insured.

According to initial estimate, production of refrigerators will resume in a few weeks, while that of the deep freezers, in which the company is leading the market, will recommence even earlier. With finished goods inventory of the products in hand, market supplies will not be affected.  Therefore, Waves home appliances will be easily available in the market. Production facilities of air conditioners, microwave oven and washing machines remained un-affected and are continuing un-interruptedly.

Thanking you for your prayers and cooperation!

Waves Spokesperson

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)   Following last year’s exceptional response to Coca-Cola Pakistan’s fund-raising campaign supporting the Edhi Foundation, the Company has once again announced their partnership with Pakistan’s leading humanitarian and social welfare services organization for this Ramazan. The ‘Eidi for Edhi’ campaign aims to inspire the people and evoke values of generosity and kindnessfor an integrated fundraising drive to be implemented nationwide.

Rizwan U. Khan, General Manager of Coca-Cola, Pakistan & Afghanistan said, “As a caring corporate citizen, Coca-Cola realized last year that it was our moral responsibility to do whatever we can to support the Foundation at a time when it was facing a decline in its own fundraising efforts. Drawing on our core strengths, we undertook a massive communication campaign last year, with the full intention of repeating it this year, and I am pleased to announce that our campaign this year will be even bigger and more effective, drawing on all the learning of last year.”

Edhi Foundation from its inception has relied on public support, and traditionally donations, both zakat and non-zakat, have registered a huge increase during the holy month of Ramazan. Without the enlightened leadership of Abdul Sattar Edhi though, the Foundation had faced a decline in donations during their first Ramazan after Edhi Sahab’s demise. As such, Coca-Cola’s ‘Bottle of Change’ campaign became a positive instrument for donations to the Edhi Foundation last year, persuading people to donate even more than before to the Foundation and thus help keep the great work of Edhi alive. The core message of the campaign this year remains the same, with the appealing slogan, ‘Eidi for Edhi’ reawakening public consciousness and willing people to come together for a great cause.

Faisal Edhi, the son of late Abdul Sattar Edhi and the present head of the Foundation said, “Coca-Cola’s campaign had triggered an immense momentum last year, helping the Foundation raise considerable funds during Ramazan. The funds were used to extend the Foundation’s charitable work to even more under-privileged people, and based on the success of last year the Foundation was keen to partner with Coca-Cola again this Ramazan.” He also expressed appreciation for Coca-Cola’s several other interventions for other good causes, partnering with reputable non-profit organizations, like with The Citizens Foundation for education, the WWF-Pakistan for environmental conservation, the Kashf Foundation for women empowerment, Rotary International for eradicating polio, and the Indus Earth Trust for water related projects.

It is to be noted that the Eidi for Edhi campaign has no commercial angle whatsoever, and the fundraising is in no way related to product purchase. Coca-Cola will itself match all public donations received up to a cap of Rs. 25million. Also, this year the Ramazan fundraising will build further on last year’s partnership by evolving the Bottle of Change into the concept of ‘Eidi for Edhi’. This will help citizens go beyond donating in cash, and also contributingin terms of meaningful gifts that the Foundation will distribute among the less privileged in society, bringing cheer into their lives on the occasion of Eid ul Fitr.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Oman Air, the national carrier of the sultanate of Oman, commences its new daily flight from Muscat to Istanbul as of June 1, 2018.  This is one of many strategic moves in the airline’s ambitious and dynamic programmed of fleet and network expansion.

The airline is offering very attractive fares that start from RO 99 for economy Economy class, which received a big response from travelers. The Airline’s Holidays division has also come up with exciting holiday packages offering tickets, hotel stay, airport transfers and excursions at a very competitive rate. Omanis travelling to Istanbul are eligible for visa on arrival.

The new route comes ahead of other new routes – to Casablanca and Moscow – set to launch in July and October of this year respectively. The Istanbul service will be operated by a Boeing 737 – 800 and will depart daily from Muscat to Istanbul Atatürk International Airport.  With a flight time of 5 hours and 25 minutes, Flight WY163 will depart Muscat daily at 20.00, arriving in Istanbul at 00.25. The return flight WY164 will depart Istanbul daily at 01.25, arriving in Muscat International Airport’s new, award-winning passenger terminal at 07.25.

The new route between Oman and Turkey will strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries, enhance the trading and tourism prospects, and enable Oman Air’s guests to explore one of the world’s most thriving cities. Intertwining both ancient and modern cultures, Istanbul is right at the heart of Turkey’s economic, historical and cultural heritage.  Istanbul is a diverse and vibrant city with much to offer Oman Air guests travelling to this beautiful destination. 

The opening of the new passenger terminal in Muscat has offered Oman Air guests a thoroughly enhanced service and the new terminal building has already won the 2018 World Travel Award’s Middle East’s leading new tourism development project for this year. Oman Air is proud to be operating up to 200 flights per day from the new state of-the-art passenger terminal. The airline also flies to 9 destinations in the GCC states, 11 in India, and 7 in Europe, apart from its Indian Sub-Continent, Far East and MENA destinations, providing guests with more choice and easy connections across its network.

Oman Air is currently undergoing an exciting fleet and network expansion programme, which will see the airline operate up to 66 aircraft to around 60 destinations by 2022. The airline continues to be recognized for its award winning on board experience; winning a raft of industry awards to add to its growing collection.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)  Engro Foods Limited is committed to foster growth of Pakistan’s dairy industry through various developmental projects. Engro Foods along with Punjab Skill Development Fund (PSDF) started the Big Push for Rural Economy (BPRE) project since 2017.

Big Push for Rural Economy (BPRE) project targeted approximately 9000 individuals across the South Punjab region. It covered over 60 villages in the region, namely Chishtian, Haroonabad, Faqeerwali, Lodhran, Bahawalpur, Muzaffargarh, Bahawalnagar and Dunyapur.

The project trained selected individuals as Livestock Extension Workers, Artificial Insemination Technicians, Farm Supervisors and Village Milk Collectors. The project kicked off in February 2017 and is coming to a close in June 2018. Over the course of roughly one year, the project reached out to as many as 11000+ individuals.

Speaking about the success of the project, the Director Agri Business of Engro Foods Limited— Syed Saud Ahmed Pasha said, ‘Over the past several years, Engro Foods Limited has participated in many developmental projects which added value to the dairy industry of Pakistan. Eradicating poverty, providing equal opportunities for women and increasing the number of self-employed individuals in the economy are the core values and objectives of Engro Foods’ dairy development projects. Large scale projects such as the ‘Big Push for Rural Economy’ are in line with the above mentioned values of Engro Foods. The project benefits Pakistan’s economy by empowering villagers to become self-employed and adding value to the whole dairy industry. We are pleased with the results of the project, as it has helped increase the overall dairy production yield by 20%.’

The Big Push for Rural Economy trained 11000+ Basic Livestock workers, 200+ Village Milk Collectors, 200+ Extension Workers, approximately 96 Farm Supervisors and 70+ Artificial Insemination Technicians.

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir)   Hutchison Ports Pakistan is pleased to announce the formal inauguration of its purpose-built, deep-water container terminal in the Port of Karachi – the first of its kind in the country.

The ceremony was led by the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, demonstrating the importance of the terminal to Pakistan’s development. Also present were Minister for Maritime Affairs Senator Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo; Sindh Governor Muhammad Zubair and the Chairman of Karachi Port Trust (KPT) Rear Admiral Jamil Akhtar.

Hutchison Ports Pakistan is a public-private partnership of Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and Hong-Kong-based Hutchison Ports. The terminal is one of the most advanced in the region, having broken its own productivity record four times and serviced some of the largest containerships in the world since test operations began on 9 December 2016. Its high performance is expected to raise Pakistan’s global trade competitiveness and set a strong foundation for further economic growth.

At the ceremony, Prime Minister Abbasi commented that the port is an historic achievement for the country and that the Pakistani Government has actively supported this initiative along with several other regional infrastructure and connectivity projects across the country. “Ports in general, and Hutchison Ports Pakistan in particular, are an integral part of Pakistan’s economic development and will contribute significantly to change Pakistan’s economic landscape for the better,” he added.

Hutchison Ports Pakistan is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to facilitate seamless operations, including eight remote-controlled quay cranes, 26 rubber-tyred gantry cranes, control tower coordination, CCTV and trunked radio systems. The terminal is also equipped with Hutchison Ports’ proven terminal operating system, nGen. nGen controls yard and quay operations with the highest level of efficiency, on par with the world’s most efficient container terminals.

Furthermore, the terminal will launch a new regional operations centre in December 2018, allowing it to engage in remote ship planning for ports in other markets that are part of the Hutchison Ports network. In sum, the facility’s technological advantages significantly reduce cycle times and provide substantial cost savings to exporters and importers.

On this topic, Senator Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo, Minister for Maritime Affairs asserted that capital-intensive mega-development projects such as Hutchison Ports Pakistan will enable optimized trade, supporting the national economy. He pointed out that 97 percent of Pakistan’s international trade was handled through seaports and that the Ministry was committed to integrating the country’ ports.

Rear Admiral Jamil Akhtar, Chairman of KPT, affirmed that the terminal will establish Karachi as a major hub for trade, playing a vital role in unlocking Pakistan’s trade potential KPT has invested over US$800 million to prepare the site for the container terminal, to dredge the deep-water channel, and more.  

Hutchison Ports Managing Director, Middle East Africa, Andy Tsoi stated that the company is committed to the continued development of Pakistan and aims to provide local industries with a unique and well-equipped gateway to world markets. He added that the port in is being operated at international standards and applies the highest level of expertise in port operations.

Captain Syed Rashid Jamil, General Manager and Head of Hutchison Ports Pakistan, noted the terminal’s advanced characteristics and concluded by affirming that Hutchison Ports Pakistan already plays an important role by creating the conditions for accelerated trade and will further magnify the Karachi’s potential, transforming it into a prime Asian hub for trade and transport activities.

Captain Syed Rashid Jamil, General Manager and Head of Hutchison Ports Pakistan, noted the terminal’s advanced characteristics and concluded by affirming that Hutchison Ports Pakistan already plays an important role by creating the conditions for accelerated trade and will further magnify the Karachi’s potential, transforming it into a prime Asian hub for trade and transport activities.