Latest news with #ShaziaMarri
Arab News
19-05-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Pakistan says $2 billion received since creation of special investment council
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said on Monday that the country has received $2 billion in foreign investment since the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) was formed in 2023. Pakistan's government formed the SIFC in June 2023 to attract international investment in key economic sectors such as tourism, livestock, trade, infrastructure, mining and minerals. The government decided to form the hybrid civil-military forum after Islamabad narrowly avoided a sovereign default in 2023 before it was saved by a last-gasp bailout program by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). 'Since its inception, more than $2 billion in foreign investment has flowed into Pakistan, and our economic indicators are improving,' Chaudhry informed lawmakers during a question hour at the National Assembly, the lower house of Pakistan's parliament. Responding to a question by lawmaker Shazia Marri, Chaudhry said the SIFC played a crucial role in removing 'bureaucratic hurdles' that previously discouraged international investors. Answering a supplementary question from lawmaker Arshad Abdullah, the minister acknowledged that Pakistan's bureaucratic processes had long deterred global investors. 'In our system, even setting up a petrol pump requires 21 NOCs (no objection certificates), while in Indonesia, only one NOC is needed to establish an industry,' Chaudhry said. He stressed that the SIFC's goal is to eliminate such inefficiencies. 'We are moving from manual to automated systems to streamline investment processes,' he shared. Since its inception in 2023, the SIFC has also been instrumental in ensuring several trade and investment deals were signed between Pakistan and its regional allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were signed.
Business Recorder
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Recorder
PPP condemns India's unprovoked aggression
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) strongly condemned India's unprovoked aggression against Pakistan. Addressing a news conference on Wednesday, the PPP central spokesperson, Shazia Marri, said that India had made a grave mistake by attacking Pakistan and that Pakistan now had every right to respond decisively. She stated that India initiated the aggression, while Pakistan acted purely in self-defence and foiled the enemy's malicious intentions. He said that Pakistan's brave armed forces gave an effective response, downed enemy warplanes, and did not target any Indian civilians. Shazia Marri strongly criticised the Indian government, stating that while the Indian military may have expensive aircraft, it lacks the spirit and resolve. She noted that despite stationing hundreds of thousands of troops in Kashmir, India failed to prevent terrorism in the Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, where terrorists targeted innocent civilians. Instead, India took out its frustrations on innocent Pakistani citizens, launching an unwarranted attack that martyred 26 innocent Pakistanis. She stated that on April 22, India conducted a false flag operation, following which the prime minister of Pakistan called for an impartial investigation—a call fully supported by the Pakistan Peoples Party. To date, India has failed to provide credible evidence regarding the Pulwama incident, which exposes the failure of Indian security forces. Shazia Marri warned that if India attempted any further cowardly actions, Pakistan would deliver a robust response. She added that Modi's war-mongering has led to tragic family separations in India, and that sooner or later, Modi will be held accountable at the international level. Other PPP leaders also condemned Indian aggression. Mahesh Kumar Malani said that Modi holds a terrorist mindset and that even India's democratically-minded citizens do not support him. He added that religious minorities in Pakistan live with full security and peace, and that if India dares another aggressive step, Pakistan's forces would respond two steps forward. Agha Rafiullah stated that the Pakistan Army has made the nation proud and that the PPP will always stand shoulder to shoulder with Pakistan's brave armed forces. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
IRSA under fire for opening TP Link Canal
The 363-kilometre-long main canal, out of which 351km is lined canal, starts from Taunsa Barrage in Muzaffargarh district of Punjab and ends in Dera Bugti district in Balochistan. PHOTO: FILE The Sindh government and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Tuesday launched a strong criticism against the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) for opening a link canal in Punjab, amid ongoing water shortages in the Indus River system. Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro, PPP spokesperson Shazia Marri, and PPP Senator Sherry Rehman, in separate statements, demanded that the Irsa immediately close the Taunsa-Panjnad (TP) Link Canal, arguing that it was designed solely for flood seasons, not for irrigation. Pakistan is currently facing a severe water shortage in the Indus River system. Data shows that during the first 10 days of April, water shortages reached 62% in Sindh and 54% in Punjab. Minister Shoro warned that repeatedly opening the TP Canal would further worsen Sindh's water crisis. "There is no drinking water available in Sindh," Shoro stated in a letter to Irsa. "Opening the TP Link Canal amid this water shortage is like rubbing salt on Sindh's wounds. The canal must be closed immediately." PPP Central Information Secretary Shazia Marri questioned the logic behind opening the canal "at a time when Sindh is facing a devastating 62% water shortage." She stressed that link canals like the TP were never intended to operate year-round. "These canals were never meant to be perennialthey should only open during floods," she said. "Operating the TP Link Canal during a shortage will further deprive downstream areas of water and cause greater harm." Marri backed the Sindh government's protest against Irsa and reiterated the PPP's long-standing demand for equitable water distribution under the 1991 Water Accord. Calling water diversion under the pretext of "technical necessity" as unacceptable, she said, "Water is not a political toolit is a constitutional right," adding that the issue should not be exploited for political gains. "For us, it's a matter of life and death." She also criticised the federal government's silence, warning that the Centre "cannot ignore the people's suffering." She added: "We demand the immediate closure of the TP Link Canal and urge Irsa and the federal government to intervene." Senator Sherry Rehman condemned the canal's opening as "highly irresponsible" and a violation of inter-provincial harmony. She demanded its immediate closure and called for a Council of Common Interests (CCI) meeting to address the crisis. Rehman noted that the Indus River was already at a 100-year low, and such actions "amount to stealing Sindh's water rights." "Irsa's bias is undeniableits decisions are inflicting severe damage on Sindh," she said. "We demand transparency, accountability, and fairness in distributing Pakistan's most vital resource: water." She warned that constructing new canals without provincial consensus would deepen disputes, saying: "Inequitable water distribution will harm millions of farmers, heighten inter-provincial tensions, and weaken the federation."
