Survey shows unemployment not under control

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Survey 2013-14 reveals that the unemployment rate in Pakistan has increased to 6.2 percent compared to 5.6 percent in 2009-10. The unemployment is the highest in Punjab.
According to the Survey, unemployment remained same in the urban areas while it increased in rural areas from 4.8 percent in 2009-10 to 5.1 percent in 2012-13.In Pakistan, according to the Economic Survey, unemployment rate is increasing in both Agriculture mechanization is major cause of reducing absorption capacity of this sector.

Although industries are being setup in some rural areas, however, employment generation opportunities due to these industries is not comparably higher.The unemployment rate in urban areas is even more than in rural areas. This high rate of unemployment is mainly due to two reasons, first is rural urban migration which is cause increasing urban population whereas job opportunities are not increasing accordingly.

The province wise comparison shows that the number of unemployed people increased in Punjab from 2.10 million in 2010-11 to 2.28 million in 2012-13. The number of unemployed people increased in Punjab is more as compared to other provinces. The apparent reason of high unemployment in Punjab is highest population among all provinces.

In case of Balochistan 0.10 million people are unemployed in 2012-13 an increase of almost 0.3 million people as compared to 2011-12. The main reasons of this increasing unemployment are bad infrastructure, law and order situation and lack of business and industrial activities.

The employment rate in Sindh decreased from 5.2 percent in 2011-12 to 5.0 percent in 2012-13. Whereas the rate in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan increased to 6.1 percent, 8.5 percent and 4.0 percent respectively as compared to the same period.

According to gender break-up, the Economic Survey 2013-14 shows that the female unemployment rate increased to 9.0 percent in 2012-13 as compared to 8.9 percent in 2010-11.While male unemployment ratio surge to 5.4 percent in said periods as compared t0 5.1 percent.

Province wise break-up shows that female unemployment rate in Sindh increased to 8.2 percent in 2012-13 from 7.2 percent in 2010-11, however, male unemployment rate in Sindh declined to 4.4 percent from 4.8 percent in comparison under review.

During 2012-13 in Punjab, female unemployment rate remained stable to 8.3 percent while male unemployment rate increased to 5.2 percent from 4.7 percent in periods under review.Interestingly, female unemployment rate in Balochistan decreased to 7.0 percent from 7.9 percent while male unemployment rate surged to 3.6 percent from 2.5 percent in said periods.

The data on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa showed similar statistics to Balochistan as female unemployment rate in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa decreased to 16.3 percent from 16.5 while male unemployment rate increased to 6.7 percent in 2012-13 from 5.9 in 2010-11.

The overall main causes of unemployment are rising population, law and order situation, lack of technical education and shortage of skill training institutes.“Youth is also facing many challenges but some of these are common in the overall labour market,” states the Survey.

However, government is well aware of these issues and focusing on long term investment in human capital through formal and informal education and strategically strengthening the links between education, skill development and the labour market would greatly benefit youth in the long term, it concluded.

Ebola outbreak under control, says Guinea president

GENEVA: Guinea's Ebola outbreak is under control, but the death toll could rise above the current 74 because sick patients remain in hospital, the president said Wednesday.

"For the moment the situation is well in hand, and we touch wood that there won't be any new cases," President Alpha Conde told reporters during a visit to Geneva, home of the World Health Organization (WHO).

However he warned that with a number of people still in hospital suspected to be suffering from the deadly virus, the death toll may yet rise.

"There haven't been any new cases. But of those who remain in quarantine, there certainly will be some who will die," he said.

Working with the UN health agency and aid groups, Guinea remains on high alert against the virus, an incurable disease that can kill up to 90 percent of its victims.

On Tuesday, the health ministry said that 74 people had died so far this year in one of the worst ever outbreaks of the virus, with 121 confirmed cases. A larger number of people have been diagnosed with haemorrhagic fever, but not all those cases have been confirmed as Ebola.

No new cases have been recorded since Sunday, although four people are receiving treatment in the capital Conakry, and six in Gueckedou, in the south, which has seen one of the most serious outbreaks.

There is no vaccine or cure for Ebola, which can be caught from handling the blood or the bodily fluids of sick or dead forest animals.

Researchers in the United States have confirmed that the Guinea outbreak began after contact with bats caught for their meat in the country's southern forests, Conde noted.

It then spread in the hunters' communities and to health workers who initially failed to identify the risk posed by feverish patients.

To try and limit the outbreak, the government has advised Guineans to stop eating bats and avoid other "bush meat" when possible, and has also striven to apply infection-control measures by monitoring potential cases and those they have come into contact with.

The disease has spread to neighbouring Liberia, with suspected cases reported in Mali and Sierra Leone sparking fears it could spread throughout the region.

But in a sign of subsiding concerns, Senegal, which had closed its border with Guinea, reopened the frontier on Tuesday, Conde said.

The WHO has described the outbreak as one of the most challenging since the virus emerged in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Ebola leads to haemorrhagic fever, causing muscle pain, weakness, vomiting, diarrhoea and, in severe cases, organ failure and unstoppable bleeding.

There is no vaccine or cure for the virus, which can easily spread among humans through contact with infected blood, bodily fluids and tissue.

Its spread can be stopped only by isolating suspected cases in ultra-clean conditions and quarantining those who have been in contact with them.

Ebola outbreak under control, says Guinea president

GENEVA: Guinea's Ebola outbreak is under control, but the death toll could rise above the current 74 because sick patients remain in hospital, the president said Wednesday.

"For the moment the situation is well in hand, and we touch wood that there won't be any new cases," President Alpha Conde told reporters during a visit to Geneva, home of the World Health Organization (WHO).

However he warned that with a number of people still in hospital suspected to be suffering from the deadly virus, the death toll may yet rise.

"There haven't been any new cases. But of those who remain in quarantine, there certainly will be some who will die," he said.

Working with the UN health agency and aid groups, Guinea remains on high alert against the virus, an incurable disease that can kill up to 90 percent of its victims.

On Tuesday, the health ministry said that 74 people had died so far this year in one of the worst ever outbreaks of the virus, with 121 confirmed cases. A larger number of people have been diagnosed with haemorrhagic fever, but not all those cases have been confirmed as Ebola.

No new cases have been recorded since Sunday, although four people are receiving treatment in the capital Conakry, and six in Gueckedou, in the south, which has seen one of the most serious outbreaks.

There is no vaccine or cure for Ebola, which can be caught from handling the blood or the bodily fluids of sick or dead forest animals.

Researchers in the United States have confirmed that the Guinea outbreak began after contact with bats caught for their meat in the country's southern forests, Conde noted.

It then spread in the hunters' communities and to health workers who initially failed to identify the risk posed by feverish patients.

To try and limit the outbreak, the government has advised Guineans to stop eating bats and avoid other "bush meat" when possible, and has also striven to apply infection-control measures by monitoring potential cases and those they have come into contact with.

The disease has spread to neighbouring Liberia, with suspected cases reported in Mali and Sierra Leone sparking fears it could spread throughout the region.

But in a sign of subsiding concerns, Senegal, which had closed its border with Guinea, reopened the frontier on Tuesday, Conde said.

The WHO has described the outbreak as one of the most challenging since the virus emerged in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Ebola leads to haemorrhagic fever, causing muscle pain, weakness, vomiting, diarrhoea and, in severe cases, organ failure and unstoppable bleeding.

There is no vaccine or cure for the virus, which can easily spread among humans through contact with infected blood, bodily fluids and tissue.

Its spread can be stopped only by isolating suspected cases in ultra-clean conditions and quarantining those who have been in contact with them.

 

Everyone should take one step back to control situation: Nisar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has said that it is his responsibility to bring the culprits involved in the attack on Geo News anchorperson Hamid Mir to book.

Talking to media here Friday, Chaudhry Nisar said that the government has constituted a three-member judicial commission tasked to probe the attack and all the evidence of the attack should be presented before the commission.

He expressed sympathy with Hamid Mir and his family members.

Nisar said that no untoward incident took place with Hamid Mir in Islamabad after PML-N assumed the government. He said Mr. Mir neither lodged any complain nor provided any numbers which might have been used for threatening him during the PML-N’s current government.

He further said that former police officials have denied any report over attack on Mr. Mir’s children. He said that if Hamid Mir or his family has any objection over Islamabad police then he would have the probe.

The interior minister further said that the government would go to any extent to unearth the culprits involved in the attack on the renowned journalist.

He called for an end to “media trial” which he said is being conducted over the issue without any evidence. The enemies are taking advantage of it, he added.

Nisar further said that he is making efforts to cool down the situation and for that purpose everyone should take one step back.

The minister said he stands by Geo and Jang group. Both Freedom of media and prestigious defence institutions are pivotal for the country, he added.

TB control, care a collective responsibility

Islamabad: Tuberculosis poses a significant development and health challenge to Pakistani society with the World Health Organisation (WHO) putting the disease’s prevalence in the country at around 630,000 a year, one of the highest in the world, according to National Manager of the National TB Control Programme Dr Ejaz Qadeer.

Dr Ejaz Qadeer told this scribe on Sunday that Pakistan along with China, India, Bangladesh and Indonesia shouldered more than half of the total TB burden of the world.

“This indeed is not an appreciable situation. We at National TB Control Programme and partners consider the current scale and scope of TB control and care efforts in the country as critical and intense,” he said.

The NTCP national manager said the data coming from provinces indicated that some regions e.g. Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Balochistan and Federally Administered Tribal Areas have shown very low notification rates but others had sustained good notification rates and treatment outcome.

He said the partnership created around TB control and care in Pakistan had grown consistently in recent years.Dr Ejaz Qadeer said financing partners including government, Global Fund and USAID had shown faith and confidence in the programme and its provincial counterparts in post-devolution regime.

“Despite the challenges created by the decentralisation of the health ministry, the NTCP has focused on further strengthening provincial capacity on programme management and implementation. Yet surveillance and monitoring and evaluation systems have also been augmented simultaneously. During the post-devolution context, implementing partners have also exhibited remarkable team spirit and stood by the programme. Expansion in MDR-TB is yet another area, where public and private sector implementing partners’ collaboration has been exemplary,” he said.

The NTCP national manager said despite the resilience of the programme and its partners, programmatic challenges remained critical and strategic in nature. He said static notifications urged proactive work on partnership strengthening with public and private health sectors through PPM; continued expansion of MDR-TB care; further investment in strengthening capacity of provinces; ensuring quality of existing services particularly laboratory network and to financially sustain these interventions, sustaining a strategic coordination with Global Fund and other donors.

“Challenges are many, diverse and complicated yet not impossible to deal with. Our team is amazing, hardworking and passionate about its work; partners are confident of our steady progress and the government ever more committed to fighting TB resiliently,” he said.Dr Ejaz Qadeer said he believed TB control and care was a collective responsibility and entailed collective benefit.

Coal power can control load-shedding in short time: Shahbaz

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif said here Sunday that coal-based power generation projects could help in controlling power crisis to a large extent within a short period of time.
He was chairing a meeting to review the matters regarding a comprehensive system for transportation of imported coal for coal power project.
Federal Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique, Minister for Ports and Shipping Kamran Michael, former federal minister Shaukat Tareen, Provincial Minister for Minerals Sher Ali Khan, Federal Secretary Ports and Shipping, General Manager Operation Railways, Chief Secretary Punjab, Acting Chairman Karachi Port Trust, Chairman Port Qasim Authority, Chairman Planning & Development, Additional Chief Secretary Energy and senior officials of Railways and NESPAK were present.
Shahbaz Sharif said that coal power cost was about 50 percent less against thermal energy and the Punjab government had selected six sites for setting up of coal power plants. There was a need to evolve a complete system for supply of imported coal from the seaports to the sites of the proposed power plants.
The Chief Minister constituted a sub-committee comprising the high-ups of concerned departments headed by Additional Chief Secretary Energy and directed that the committee should consider all aspects of the matters in a professional manner and submit its final recommendations in two weeks. The committee would comprise senior officers of Railways, Port Qasim, NTDC, Karachi Port Trust, NESPAK, PESPAK and Punjab government.
He said that all out measures were being taken to rid the country of energy crisis and the work was being carried out on power generation projects round the clock under the leadership of Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif.
The efforts of the government would succeed to remove darkness from the country, he said, adding that all the departments concerned would have to move forward in a planned manner for controlling shortage of electricity, and there should be a close coordination between the concerned departments regarding transportation of imported coal.
Shahbaz Sharif said there was a need for evolving a comprehensive mechanism for the supply of imported coal from seaports to the power generation plants through rail routes. Chinese technology, he said, should be used for off loading of coal from ships at the ports.
While, Khawaja Saad Rafique said the model of development evolved by Punjab Chief Minister would be followed for proceeding in this matter and Railways would play a key role in the supply of imported coal.
Kamran Michael said the way government was moving forward speedily for resolving energy crisis had given the hope that Pakistan would soon counter its shortage of electricity. He said the target given by Punjab government for supply of coal would be achieved within the time frame.
Acting Chairman Karachi Port Trust and Chairman Port Qasim Authority gave briefing on the capacity of their respective institutions, while General Manager Railways spoke about the supply of imported coal through Railways.

Katy Perry says Russell wanted to have kids ’as a way’ to control her

According to the Daily Mirror, American pop artist Katy Perry said her ex-husband Russell Brand ended his relationship with her because he wanted her to sacrifice her profession. The ‘Roar’ singer believes Brand wanted her to have a child as it would have diverted her attention from music career by restricting her to home. According to the Daily Mirror, Perry told Elle magazine, "When I decide to have a family, I'll just want to be ...

Russia wresting control of Crimea from Ukraine

KIEV: Russian President Vladimir Putin wrested control of the Ukrainian Black Sea region of Crimea from Kiev on Saturday citing a threat to Russian citizens and servicemen of the Russian Black Sea fleet based there.

Putin asked the upper house of parliament to approve sending armed forces to the Ukrainian territory, which has a majority ethnic Russian population.

But Crimea had already begun to slip from Kiev's control with closure of the main airport and deployment of pro-Russian guards at key buildings.

Putin's statement, and remarks from a pro-Russian leader installed in Crimea this week, effectively confirmed what most people in the region had assumed: that military units who had seized control in the past two days were indeed Moscow's.

Ukraine accused Russia of sending thousands of extra troops to Crimea, largely hostile to the Kiev government which emerged from the overthrow of president Viktor Yanukovich last weekend. It placed its military in the area on high alert.

After Yanukovich's overthrow, Crimea quickly became the focus of a crisis bearing perils for the entire region. Ukraine teeters on the brink of economic disaster, mired in debt.

Any further spread of separatist sentiment to industrial, Russian-speaking eastern territories could raise the risk of disintegration with serious implications for surrounding states including Russia, Poland and Belarus.

Putin turned to parliament after a day of events viewed with deep concern in Europe and the United States. British foreign minister William Hague said he had spoken to Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and called for a 'de-escalation' of tensions.

US President Barack Obama said any Russian intervention in Ukraine would carry costs for Moscow. "In connection with the extraordinary situation in Ukraine, the threat to the lives of citizens of the Russian Federation, our compatriots, and the personnel of the armed forces of the Russian Federation.

I submit a proposal on using the armed forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine until the normalisation of the socio-political situation in the that country," Putin said in a statement to parliament. Crimea's regional premier had appealed to Putin for help ensuring "peace and tranquility".

The armed Russian presence on the streets aroused mixed feelings. Near the town of Balaclava in Crimea armed Russian-speaking men wearing camouflage but no markings associating them with the Russian military blockaded a Ukrainian border guard post. They were backed by armoured cars, again unmarked.

"I want to live with Russia. I want to join Russia," said Alla Batura, a petite 71-year-old pensioner who has lived in Sevastopol for 50 years.

"They are good lads. They are protecting us, so we feel safe." Inna, 21, a clerk in a nearby store who came out to stare at the APCs was less enthusiastic.

"I am in shock. I don't understand what the hell this is People say they came here to protect us. Who knows? All of our (Ukrainian) military are probably out at sea by now."

"HERO CITY": Crimean premier Sergei Aksyonov said servicemen of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, based in Crimea under a lease, had been deployed to guard important buildings.

Men in combat uniforms without markings have occupied the regional parliament building since Thursday and seized airfields on Friday.

The main civil airport at the fleet town of Simferopol announced it had closed its airspace. Russia accused Kiev-backed gunmen of attacking the Interior Ministry building and wounding personnel in "treacherous provocation".

Language emanating from Moscow was reminiscent of the Cold War when Moscow felt its allied states in eastern Europe under threat from Western intrigue something the Kremlin has cited in recent weeks as a factor in the crisis.

Putin used the justification of protecting Russian citizens in 2008 when he ordered the invasion of neighbouring Georgia, where Moscow quickly seized two breakaway regions and recognised them as independent.

For many Russians, Crimea and its Soviet-era "Hero City" of Sevastopol, besieged by Nazi invaders, has strong emotional resonance. For Ukraine, independent of Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and already facing an economic crisis, its loss would be an enormous blow.

Trains were operating normally between Crimea and the Ukrainian hinterland and roads were open, but major sea and air movements appeared to be under Russian control.

Dmitry Trenin of the Moscow Carnegie Center think tank said he did not believe Putin sought to wage war over Crimea. "Russia wants to avoid bloodshed," he told the German Der Spiegel online. "That is why the military is blocking approach ways.

That prevents units of the Ukrainian army or police or Ukrainian nationalist volunteers entering Crimea. At the same time, the region would get economic help from Russia."

Ukraine's new leaders, who had pressed a long street campaign against Yanukovich after he rejected a deal with the European Union in favour of closer ties with Russia, appear hard pressed to handle events in Crimea.

Interfax quoted the Ukrainian border guard as saying its vessels had been put on combat alert in the Crimea. "It is unacceptable when armoured Russian military vehicles are out in the centre of Ukrainian towns," Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said at the start of a government meeting in Kiev.

"We do not give in to provocative actions, we do not use force and we demand that Russia stop its provocative actions and return the troops to base."