News Buzz

February 2025

8th LRBT Golf Tournament Tees Off to Raise Funds


The Layton Rahmatulla Benevolent Trust (LRBT) proudly hosted the 8th LRBT Golf Tournament on January 12, 2025, at the prestigious Karachi Golf Club. This annual event brought together golfing enthusiasts and philanthropists with the shared mission of raising funds to provide free eye care to underprivileged individuals, ensuring that no man, woman, or child loses their vision.
Abdullah Hussain Haroon, a renowned businessman, politician, and diplomat, was the Chief Guest at the tournament. His presence added distinction to the occasion, which saw enthusiastic participation from 36 teams, including professionals from financial institutions, corporate entities, and business houses. Beyond showcasing their golfing skills, these participants generously supported LRBT’s noble cause.

8th LRBT Golf Tournament Tees 2

Abdullah Hussain Haroon, along with the 8th
LRBT Golf Tournament winners.

Now in its eighth consecutive year, the LRBT Golf Tournament has become a valued tradition, focused on generating vital funds to support LRBT’s extensive network of 20 hospitals and 61 primary eye care clinics across Pakistan. These facilities serve the most marginalized communities, helping prevent avoidable blindness nationwide.

PTCL Injects PKR 4 Billion Capital in U Bank

Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd. (PTCL) Group, the parent company of U Microfinance Bank (U Bank), has injected a significant capital investment of PKR 4 billion (equivalent to USD 15 million) into U Bank, to drive the growth of its Islamic Banking services and digital innovation initiatives.

This strategic equity boost underscores the unwavering confidence that PTCL Group has in U Bank’s promising growth strategy, upward trajectory, and viable vision for its future.

This injection is pivotal for U Bank as it prepares for its Year of Transformation in 2025 - a year dedicated to evolving, scaling up the business, and furthering its commitment to financial inclusion. U Bank’s transformational strategy encompasses initiating its operational conversion to Islamic Banking, catering to the growing demand for riba-free and Shari’ah-compliant financial solutions in the microfinance industry in Pakistan.

The bank also aims to significantly enhance its digital capabilities to position itself as one of the leaders in Pakistan’s digital microfinance banking space, providing innovative and customer-centric solutions.

Don’t play with fire on water issue: Lawmakers

The government’s plan to divert water from the Indus River for corporate farming sparked heated debate in the Senate, with lawmakers from both sides of the aisle urging the matter to be resolved at the Council of Common Interests (CCI).

PPP Vice President and Senate parliamentary leader Sherry Rehman criticised the proposal to construct six new canals without consulting relevant stakeholders.

Speaking on an adjournment motion, she wondered why the government was tight-lipped over controversial projects.

“If the caretakers could not understand the meaning of green Pakistan, at least we should understand it,” she said, demanding assurance that “half of Pakistan will not be made water-deficient for corporate farming”.

Britain’s Princess Kate is in remission from cancer

Catherine, Princess of Wales, said she was “in remission” from cancer after she and her husband, Prince William, visited the specialist London hospital where she was treated.
“It is a relief to now be in remission and I remain focussed on recovery,” the princess posted on Instagram, alongside a picture of her visit to the Royal Marsden Hospital.

The couple thanked staff and met patients at the specialist cancer centre operating across three sites in the capital.

“I wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to The Royal Marsden for looking after me so well during the past year,” Catherine wrote on Instagram.

The visit came as Kensington Palace announced that the couple had become the hospital’s joint patrons.

As patrons, members of the royal family support over 3,000 organisations, such as charities and hospitals, by highlighting their work through visits.

The visit was said to be “incredibly poignant” for the princess, also known as Kate, who turned 43 in January.

China’s Himalayan mega dam deepens India’s water worries

CHINAS HIMALAYANHigh on the Tibetan Plateau, the Yarlung Tsangpo River roars through the world’s deepest canyon, plunging nearly 8,000 metres (26,250ft) before crossing into India as the Brahmaputra.

For centuries, this river has been a lifeline for the millions living downstream. But now, a US$137 billion hydropower project – the largest of its kind ever attempted – threatens to turn its waters into a new front in the rivalry between China and India.

Approved by Beijing, the project is poised to dwarf the massive Three Gorges Dam in scale, generating three times as much power. But this engineering marvel also represents a new, more insidious battleground: water.

Analysts warn that while the project may not provoke immediate conflict, it lays the groundwork for a contentious new chapter in a relationship already defined by mistrust, border clashes, and competing regional ambitions.

World Bank calls on Pakistan to ‘do more’

The World Bank has called on Pakistan to ‘do more’ on wide-ranging reforms to put the house in order to achieve better economic development and prosperity for its population. WB also advocated for global mechanisms to compensate climate-affected countries through carbon pricing to deter emissions.

In an exclusive discussion, the World Bank’s Vice President for South Asia, Martin Raiser, blamed limited and lackluster long-standing reforms in the energy, water, and revenue sectors. He said Pakistan had made some initial decisions that went in the right direction, but many more good decisions are needed, and implementations should be made.

He said the World Bank did not have a Country Partnership Framework (CPF) with Pakistan after 2015, which saw the Covid-19 pandemic and floods. Therefore, the bank has now considered a longer 10-year engagement as some challenges were enormous and could not have been addressed in three to four years. Raiser said that “to deal with the issue of climate change, we do need a pricing instrument that disincentivises the emissions of carbon” so that it can generate resources to invest in resilience. However, he said climate justice and the transfer from historic emitters to those affected were very complicated in global negotiations due to politics, although the moral case for compensation was very strong.

“There is no alternative to dealing with underlying issues of improved system governance, better system planning and investments in a targeted manner,” he said, adding that the expansion of renewable energy and hydropower would gradually bring down costs and improve quality of service for consumers

Bangladesh top court acquits ex-PM Khaleda Zia in corruption case

Bangladesh’s Supreme Court has acquitted ex-Prime Minister Khaleda Zia in a 2008 corruption case, overturning a previous 10-year prison sentence.

In 2018, the country’s High Court had convicted Zia and others of misappropriating funds meant for orphans when she was last prime minister, from 2001 to 2006.

But following an appeal, a five-judge panel led by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed acquitted Zia and all other defendants in the case, including her son and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairperson Tarique Rahman.

“The case was so vile that both those who appealed and those who couldn’t appeal have all been acquitted,” defence lawyer Zainul Abedin told the press after the verdict.

The verdict is the latest judicial victory for 79-year-old Zia and her family from the BNP, one of two main groups that have dominated the country’s politics.

Taliban free 2 Americans in prisoner swap with US

Taliban authorities in Afghanistan announced the release of two American nationals as part of a prisoner exchange for one of their members, who was held in the United States on narcotics-terrorism charges.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kabul identified the freed Afghan as Khan Mohammad and described him as a “mujahid,” a term the Taliban use for their fighters.

The statement said that the man was arrested nearly two decades ago in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar and subsequently extradited to the U.S., where a federal court convicted him, resulting in his imprisonment for life in California.

Nestlé inaugurates biomass boiler

Nestlé inaugurates biomassNestlé, as part of its commitment to Pakistan’s vision for renewable energy, inaugurated a biomass boiler at its Kabirwala Factory under its PKR 2 billion umbrella investment in renewable power and sustainability initiatives. This is part of Nestlé’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in line with its 2050 Net Zero commitments and the Pakistan government’s UN climate change pledge.

Inaugurating the plant, Christian Schmid, Nestlé’s Head of Technical for Asia, Oceania, and Africa, said, “Nestlé’s ongoing investment in Pakistan reflects our deep confidence in the country’s potential. This biomass boiler not only underscores our commitment to sustainability but also to creating shared value for the people of Pakistan. Together, we are taking significant strides towards a cleaner environment and more sustainable future.”

This Biomass Boiler will help the Pakistan government achieve its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) commitment to reach 60% renewable energy by 2030. The boiler will reduce approximately 10,500 tons of CO2 equivalent emissions per year, equivalent to the emissions of 2,300 cars, and contribute to a 20% reduction in GHG emissions. Additionally, it will generate approximately 80,000 tons of steam per year, accounting for 85% of the renewable energy contribution to the factory’s total thermal energy needs, with anticipated fuel savings of approximately 6 million Nm3 of natural gas and 29 tons of heavy furnace oil annually.