LAHORE: It can outrun a horse and kick like a piston rod but at Mashooq Ali’s shop on Lahore’s sprawling Ferozpur Road, the lone ostrich can barely move or even spread its wings.
Ali bought the bird for Rs52,000 ($370) from a farm in Okara ten days ago . Since then, though patrons have thronged to his store for a glimpse of the African giant -- many marvelling at his magnificent size or tossing him things to eat -- there are few buyers.
Ostriches, the largest species of bird, were hunted for their meat, feathers and tough skin in the wild and now survive around the world mostly on special farms.
On average, a single ostrich can provide up to 33 kilograms of meat. The Punjab government’s fixed price per kilogramme is Rs1,300 ($9.5). A placard outside Ali’s shop announces that only large orders will be entertained.
“I cannot afford to make a loss by slaughtering it too early,” Ali told Arab News, pointing to the ostrich cowering in the corner of the shop and visible through a glass wall. “What if the rest [of the meat] doesn’t sell?”
Ali is one of hundreds of ostrich meat vendors in Pakistan’s richest and most populous province of Punjab, drawn to the business in 2017 when the provincial government granted a Rs14.5 million subsidy to farmers to breed and farm the birds. At the time, the government also promised to pay Rs10,000 per ostrich to those willing to rear between 25 to 100 chicks.
Initially, about a dozen farms cropped up in Punjab and ballooned to 275 in number. But two years later, despite government support and the best of intentions, the business has not taken off.
For many Pakistanis, ostrich meat is still as strange and exotic as it is expensive, so returns have been disappointingly low as supply has far outstripped demand. Also, hoping for high profit margins, farmers quickly jumped into the business without much knowledge of breeding practices., causing over-saturation of the market. This combined with the government’s unwillingness to renew subsides grounded the industry even before it could take off.
This is bad news for a government that had envisioned replacing beef with ostrich meat, which many say tastes like beef but is low in fat and cholesterol, and planned to rear enough birds to export eggs, skin and feathers.
“Pakistan has been trying to establish this business for the last 20 years,” Dr. Nasir Mukhtar, assistant professor at the Ostrich Research and Development Centre in Rawalpindi, said. “But unfortunately each attempt has failed.”
The Centre was set up to facilitate farming and train farmers in rearing and breeding the birds.
According to the Centre, Pakistan first imported 53 ostriches in 2013. The number shot up to 3,000 last year. But a lack of funds has meant the Centre has had to freeze many of its research initiatives.
“We were moving to our second phase of development, which included seeing what different products can be made from ostrich skin,” Dr. Muhammad Talha Sajjad, a project director at the Centre, said. “But the new government has not authorised new subsidies or grants for the industry. This has put farmers under a lot of stress.”
Dr Asif Rafiq, communications director at the Punjab ministry of livestock, confirmed the government had withdrawn the subsidy but that the ministry was in talks with the farmers’ association about a new grant. Before the funds could be released, he said, the gap between demand and supply needed to be closed.
Colonel (r) Maqsood Qureshi, who invested Rs1.8 million to start an ostrich farm but failed to make a profit, said the large number of farmers who initially flocked to the business had over-saturated the market.
“Many of these farmers had no know-how on how to rear the birds,” Qureshi said.
Rafiq at the ministry of livestock agreed that a majority of the farmers had not bothered to study the birds, breeding practices or the market before investing. But the industry could still, perhaps, take off, he said.
One measure to bolster the industry was setting up an ostrich farm on the periphery of Lahore’s old city where meat would be sold even on the meatless days of Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
“We are working on launching a marketing campaign to promote the bird,” Rafiq said. “This time we need maximum results.”
In Pakistan’s Punjab, big bird farms yield small dividends
In Pakistan’s Punjab, big bird farms yield small dividends
- Two years after the government announced a Rs14.5 subsidy for ostrich farmers, the business has failed to take off
- Over-saturation of the market and government unwillingness to renew subsides has grounded the ostrich industry
Senior World Bank official concludes Pakistan trip, reaffirms support for economic stability
- World Bank Vice President for South Asia Martin Raiser meets PM Sharif, key officials in Islamabad
- Raiser praises Pakistan’s reform plans to boost growth, attract private investment and tackle poverty
KARACHI: A senior World Bank official concluded his three-day visit to Pakistan on Wednesday, reaffirming the international institution’s support for the country’s economic stabilization after meeting Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and key government officials in Islamabad.
World Bank Vice President for South Asia Martin Raiser arrived in the federal capital on May 6, with his visit taking place as Pakistan faces a chronic balance of payment crisis, forcing it to turn to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a new long-term bailout deal.
Pakistan has faced the challenges of revenue generation and government expenditure in the past and struggled with high levels of debt, a large fiscal deficit and an ongoing need for structural reforms to improve its fiscal sustainability.
“The World Bank Vice President for South Asia, Martin Raiser, concluded his three-day visit to Pakistan today and reaffirmed the World Bank’s support to stabilize the economy and accelerate inclusive and resilient growth,” a press release by the international institution read.
It said Raiser met Sharif, ministers of finance, water, power, energy, and petroleum, and his counterparts to discuss Pakistan’s development priorities.
“The discussions focused on economic and fiscal reforms, human capital development, adaptation to climate change, energy sector reforms, and digitalization as a foundational enabler and accelerator of development,” the World Bank added. \
Raiser said he was pleased to learn of Pakistan’s reform plans to boost growth and attract private investment, strengthen climate resilience, and invest in human capital to tackle daunting challenges such as child stunting and poverty.
The World Bank official also visited Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province to meet Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.
“Discussions focused on the provincial developmental priorities and how can the World Bank step up its support in key sectors, like education, water and sanitation, health, rural roads, and livelihoods,” the statement said.
He also attended a national conference on education in Islamabad, where PM Sharif also spoke. Raiser reaffirmed the World Bank’s commitment to urgent action to tackle the large number of out-of-school children in Pakistan.
PM Sharif declares ‘education emergency’ across Pakistan to enroll out-of-school children
- Pakistan has one of the world’s highest out-of-school children population at 26.2 million
- PM Shehbaz Sharif says will personally oversee the national program to ensure its success
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday declared an “education emergency” across Pakistan on Wednesday, vowing to personally oversee the program which he hoped would enroll over 26.2 million out-of-school children in educational institutions.
Pakistan has the second-highest population of out-of-school children in the world at 26.2 million, according to Unicef Pakistan. Pakistani experts have identified population growth, lack of localized strategies, and economic issues as the main reasons why over 26 million Pakistani children are not enrolled in schools across the country.
A report by Pakistan’s education ministry in January revealed that out of 26.2 million out-of-school children, 11.73 million are in Punjab, 7.63 million in Sindh, 3.63 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and 3.13 million in Balochistan province.
Speaking at an event titled “National Conference on Education Emergency,” Sharif said enrolling millions of children back into schools was a “tall order” that could be achieved with conviction.
“I declare from this moment an emergency in education all over Pakistan,” Sharif told members of the conference, which included federal ministers, parliamentarians, vice-chancellors, and diplomats.
The Pakistani prime minister said he would personally oversee the national program, adding that he would meet the chief ministers of all four provinces in the country for the sake of Pakistani children and their future.
“This is about our children and our future,” Sharif said. “This is a very challenging task, no doubt. But nations which had faced difficulties and defeat in the past arose from the ashes of defeat.”
He hoped provincial governments in Pakistan would help the center in achieving its goal of promoting education in the country and transforming it into an educated nation.
“I guarantee, if we move in unison to find our space, Pakistan will become one of the most educated societies one day soon,” he remarked.
Pakistan’s first lunar satellite ICUBE-Q successfully enters moon’s orbit
- ICUBE-Q was deployed in moon’s orbit around 1:14 p.m. Pakistan Standard Time, says Institute of Space technology official
- IST official describes development as “important” one for Pakistan allowing it to conduct “bigger” space missions in future
Islamabad: Pakistan’s first lunar satellite ICUBE-Q entered the moon’s orbit successfully today, Wednesday, a senior official of the country’s Institute of Space Technology (IST) confirmed, saying the “important” development could pave the way for “bigger” space missions for the country in the future.
The ICUBE-Qamar satellite carries two optical cameras to image the lunar surface and weighs around 7kg. Cubesats are tiny box-shaped satellites that are mainly launched into low Earth orbit to observe the Earth, test new communications technology, or perform miniature experiments.
Pakistan’s first lunar satellite was launched aboard China’s Chang’e-6 probe on May 3. The Chinese probe is tasked with landing on the far side of the moon, which perpetually faces away from the Earth, after which it will retrieve and return samples. China is the first country to make such an ambitious attempt.
“Our ICUBE-Q was deployed successfully in its orbit at 1:14 p.m. Pakistan Standard Time,” Dr. Khurram Khurshid, the head of the electrical engineering and computer science department at IST and a co-lead on the satellite project, told Arab News.
Dr. Khurshid said Pakistani officials will continue to test the satellite’s system for the next three to four days. He said initial tests revealed there were no complications with the cubesat’s system.
The IST official said the development means Pakistan is officially in an exclusive club of countries that have conducted deep space missions.
“This is the first step, a step in the right direction,” Dr. Khurshid noted. “It can lead to bigger space missions, such as landing on the moon or various other experiments.”
Dr. Khurshid said Pakistan would be able to share images from the satellite by May 15.
Around 100 students from IST contributed to developing the satellite. Pakistan’s proposal to build the satellite was accepted by the China National Space Agency (CNSA) from plans submitted by eight member states of the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO).
The design, development, and qualification of the ICUBE-Q satellite were spearheaded by faculty members and students of the IST in collaboration with China’s Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), with support from Pakistan’s National Space Agency, SUPARCO.
The ICUBE-Q has two cameras as payload for taking images of the lunar surface that will be transmitted back to Earth for analysis.
Taliban deny Pakistani claims of Afghan involvement in attack on Chinese workers
- According to Islamabad, bombing that killed five Chinese in Pakistan was planned in Afghanistan
- Afghan defense ministry says the March attack showed weakness of Pakistan’s security agencies
KABUL: The Taliban rejected on Wednesday allegations of Afghan involvement in a recent deadly attack on Chinese workers in neighboring Pakistan.
The five Chinese nationals, who were employed on the site of a hydropower project in Dasu in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, were killed alongside their driver in a suicide blast on March 26.
Pakistan’s military said on Tuesday that the attack was planned in Afghanistan and that the attacker was an Afghan citizen.
Maj. Gen. Ahmad Sharif, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s army, also told reporters that Islamabad had “solid evidence” of militants using Afghan soil to launch attacks in Pakistan, that since the beginning of the year such assaults had killed more than 60 security personnel, and that authorities in Kabul were unhelpful in addressing the violence.
The Taliban’s Ministry of Defense responded on Wednesday that the claims were “irresponsible and far from the reality.”
“Blaming Afghanistan for such incidents is a failed attempt to divert attention from the truth, and we strongly reject it,” Enayatullah Khwarazmi, the ministry’s spokesperson, said in a statement.
“The killing of Chinese citizens in an area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which is under tight security cover of the Pakistani army shows the weakness of the Pakistani security agencies or cooperation with the attackers.”
The Dasu attack followed two other major assaults in regions where China has invested more than $65 billion in infrastructure projects as part of its wider Belt and Road Initiative.
On March 25, a naval air base was attacked in Turbat in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, and on March 20, militants stormed a government compound in nearby Gwadar district, which is home to a Chinese-operated port.
Pakistan is home to twin insurgencies, one by militants related to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan — the Pakistani Taliban — and the other by ethnic separatists who seek secession in southwestern Balochistan province, which remains Pakistan’s poorest despite being rich in natural resources.
While the attacks in Balochistan were claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army — the most prominent of several separatist groups in the province, no group claimed responsibility for the one in Dasu.
Blaming it on Afghanistan, however, was “baseless,” according to Naseer Ahmad Nawidy, international relations professor at Salam University in Kabul.
“The insurgency in the region has existed for very long now and cannot be attributed to a specific area or country. Pakistan looks at the Islamic Emirate in its current form as a threat to its interests. The Pakistan government needs to develop its relations with the Islamic Emirate based on equal rights and good will for stability in the whole region,” Nawidy told Arab News.
“Stability in the region requires mutual cooperation and trust. The governments in Afghanistan and Pakistan must end the relations crisis at the earliest. Repeating such claims will further increase the tensions and may cause enmity between the two countries.”
Abdul Saboor Mubariz, political scientist and lecturer at Alfalah University in Jalalabad, said Pakistan’s claims were meant to put pressure on the Taliban to help Islamabad in its campaign against the TTP.
“Pakistan’s government is using different forms of pressure such as forcible deportation of Afghan refugees, claims about security threats from Afghanistan, closing border points and creating challenges for Afghan traders,” he said, adding that accusations and claims of links to attacks were affecting the Taliban administration as it still sought recognition from foreign governments.
“The claims are critical for the Islamic Emirate as it is seeking engagement with the countries in the region and across the globe, while the government remains unrecognized by all world countries.”
First Makkah Route Hajj flight to depart from Karachi airport tomorrow
- First 11 Hajj flights carrying 2,160 Pakistani pilgrims scheduled to land in Madinah on Thursday
- Makkah Route Initiative was recently expanded to Karachi, previously available in Islamabad
KARACHI: Pakistan will launch its month-long Hajj flight operation from tomorrow, Thursday, with 11 flights scheduled to arrive in Madinah from five major Pakistani cities, including Karachi where passengers will utilize the Makkah Route Initiative for the first time.
Pakistani officials last month confirmed Saudi Arabia’s decision to expand the Makkah Route Initiative, previously available in Islamabad, to the airport in Karachi, the country’s largest and most populous city.
Launched in 2019, the Makkah Route Initiative allows for the completion of immigration procedures at the pilgrims’ country of departure, making it possible to bypass long immigration and customs checks on reaching Saudi Arabia. The facility significantly reduces waiting times and makes the entry process smoother and faster.
“These flights will transport pilgrims from Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan, and Peshawar to the Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz International Airport (Madinah Airport), beginning a massive influx of devotees from Pakistan and other parts of the world,” state news agency APP said, adding that the first 11 flights would take 2,160 Hajj pilgrims to Madinah.
The agency reported that Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Pakistan, would visit the Islamabad and Karachi airports, both now operated under the Makkah Route Initiative, to bid farewell to Pakistani Hajj pilgrims.
“The pilgrims will be received by authorities concerned at the Pakistan Consulate General and the Hajj Mission of the Ministry of Religious Affairs,” APP added.
Under the Hajj flight operation, five airlines – Pakistan International Airlines, Saudi Airlines, Airblue, Serene Air, and Air Sial – will operate 259 sorties to transport around 68,000 intending pilgrims from eight major cities of Pakistan, namely Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Multan, Quetta, Sialkot, and Sukkur, to Jeddah and Madinah under the government scheme.
According to the flight schedule, the first flight, PF754 (AirSial), is scheduled to depart for Madinah at 01:45 am from Karachi, carrying around 150 intending Hajj pilgrims. The last Hajj flight, SV3727 (Saudi Airlines), will depart on June 10 from Islamabad to Jeddah, with 380 passengers onboard.
During the first 15 days, all flights will operate from various cities of Pakistan to Madinah until May 23, and afterwards, they will land at the King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah, until the completion of the Hajj flight operation.
This year, around 179,210 Pakistanis will perform Hajj under both the government and private schemes, for which a month-long flight operation is scheduled to commence on May 9, tomorrow.
Out of 179,210 pilgrims, 89,605 each will embark on the holy journey under the government and private schemes, while a quota of 25,000 and 44,802 pilgrims, respectively, have been allocated to the sponsorship schemes.
