ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s health ministry has said the country had not yet reported any cases of the “Indian strain” of the coronavirus considered to be responsible for a catastrophic second wave of the pandemic in its South Asian neighbor, while the prime minister’s special adviser on health said on Tuesday it was “incorrect” to say the government was only relying on gifts and donations of vaccine jabs to meet its demand.
India recorded more than 320,000 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday as a grim surge of illness and death ripped through the country.
Syed Sajid Shah, a spokesperson for the Pakistani health ministry, told reporters on Monday the country was still “safe” from the Indian variant while cases of the UK variant were being reported in Pakistan.
Pakistan has already banned land and air travel from India. Last week, it offered “relief support” to India as hospitals in the neighboring nation begged for oxygen supplies and coronavirus infections soared.
On Tuesday, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health, Dr. Faisal Sultan, said the government was not solely relying on gifts and donations of vaccines and had a purchase plan in place, including contracts with three vaccine companies.
“To say that the government is waiting to receive vaccines as gifts is incorrect,” Sultan said, adding that the delay in the arrival of more vaccines in Pakistan was due to global supply shortages.
We have signed deals for 30 million doses, including a deal for technology transfer and joint manufacturing of China’s CanSino vaccine, the health chief said, adding that money was not a concern and the government was willing to spend.
“Many countries were not able to get vaccines despite advance booking,” Sultan said, giving the examples of Canada and Australia and adding that the government was also yet to receive vaccine jabs from global alliance COVAX, delayed due to supply chain issues.
He said the government had purchased three million doses of available vaccines by March 30 and two million people had so far been inoculated.
Pakistan says ‘Indian variant’ of COVID-19 not detected, denies only relying on vaccine donations
https://arab.news/nq8xg
Pakistan says ‘Indian variant’ of COVID-19 not detected, denies only relying on vaccine donations
- Heath chief says government has signed contracts for 30 million doses including technology transfer from China
- Says delays in arrival of more vaccines due to global supply shortages, two million people vaccinated so far
Pakistan mulls 'Super App' for public services, document verification in major technology push
- Pakistan has been urging technology adoption in public, private sectors as it seeks to become a key tech player globally
- The country this month launched the Indus AI Week to harness technology for productivity, skills development and innovation
KARACHI: Pakistan is planning to launch a “Super App” to deliver public services and enable digital document verification, the country's information technology (IT) minister said on Sunday, amid a major push for technology adoption in public and private sectors.
Pakistan, a country of 240 million people, seeks to become a key participant in the global tech economy, amid growing interest from governments in the Global South to harness advanced technologies for productivity, skills development and innovation.
The country's information and communications technology (ICT) exports hit a record $437 million in Dec. last year, according to IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja. This constituted a 23% increase month on month and a 26% increase year on year.
Pakistan's technology sector is also advancing in artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing, marked by the launch of Pakistan’s first sovereign AI cloud in November, designed to keep sensitive data domestic and support growth in the broader digital ecosystem.
“In developed countries, citizens can access all government services from a mobile phone,” Fatima said, announcing plans for the Super App at an event in Karachi where more than 7,000 students had gathered for an AI training entrance test as part of the ‘Indus AI Week.’
“We will strive to provide similar facilities in the coming years.”
Khawaja said the app will reduce the need for in-person visits to government offices such as the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and the Higher Education Commission (HEC).
The Indus AI Week initiative, which ran from Feb. 9 till Feb. 15. was aimed at positioning Pakistan as a key future participant in the global AI revolution, according to the IT minister.
At the opening of the weeklong initiative, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced that Pakistan would invest $1 billion in AI by 2030 to modernize the South Asian nation’s digital economy.
“These initiatives aim to strengthen national AI infrastructure and make the best use of our human resource,” Khawaja said, urging young Pakistanis to become creators, inventors and innovators rather than just being the consumers of technology.
