NBP’s role in agri

The National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) launched a new low markup rate agricultural loan programme to support the farming industry, as per a press release. With this initiative, farmers can increase their crop yield by availing of agriculture loans with swift processing.

In addition, NBP is offering special discounts on the markup rate for women to encourage female participation in the farming industry. The loan can finance a range of agricultural needs, including warehouse, solar tube-well, fisheries, new tractors, agriculture baler, seeds, soil, and pesticides.

Webinar on citrus pests

The Pakistan Horticulture Development & Export Company (PHDEC) conducted a webinar on the topic of “Biological control of insects, pests of citrus”, according to a press release. The aim of the webinar was to bring the maximum of stakeholders on board to discuss the control of insect pests of citrus.

Chinese and Pakistani scientists, in collaboration, developed biological control measures to enhance the quality and yield of citrus fruits in Pakistan. A research centre “China-Pakistan Citrus Pest Management Centre” was launched in 2018 to explore green and sustainable solutions for citrus pests jointly.

PJBF elects new board

Pakistan Japan Business Forum (PJBF), a leading organisation promoting business ties between Japan and Pakistan, held elections on March 31, 2023, to elect a new board of directors (BoD) from amongst its members.

Following the organisation’s earlier pattern, 20 members were elected, with 10 from the Japanese and 10 from the Pakistani members. The PJBF BoD has a tenure of three years, and the new Chairman of PJBF is Murtaza Y Mandviwalla.

PJBF is committed to strengthening the bonds of friendship and promoting business ties between Japan and Pakistan. The organisation provides its members with a range of services and programmes and is dedicated to fostering greater cooperation and understanding between the two nations.

SECP’s ballot amendments

SECP has recently made amendments in the Companies (Postal Ballot) Regulations, 2018, whereby the right to vote through an electronic voting facility must be provided to members of every listed company for all businesses classified as a special business under the Companies Act 2017, as per a press release.

These amendments have especially been introduced to add greater value to the shareholders.

Being the leading Share Registrar Service partner, CDC Share Registrar Services Limited (CDCSR), a wholly owned subsidiary of Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited, recently conducted a series of awareness sessions regarding these recent amendments.

OGDCL Parco MoU

Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) and Parco ink a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for new projects, according to a press release, as part of a business diversification and energy transition strategy.

This MoU was signed for collaboration and joint venture opportunities in the energy sector, including oil and gas infrastructure projects. Both sides will constitute joint working groups to evaluate opportunities, undertake feasibilities and establish joint ventures for commercially, technically and economically feasible projects.

OGDCL and Parco have joined hands to explore opportunities for business growth to ensure term sustainability and for enhancing shareholder value. In the first phase, world-class consultants will be engaged to identify and evaluate new opportunities. Both companies have also identified specific projects and areas of cooperation, which will help materialise tangible progress on a fast-track basis.

UBL’s AML measures

United Bank Limited (UBL) has partnered with AKS iQ, a leading Reg Tech company, to implement an advanced trade-based anti-money laundering (TBML) solution in line with the Bank’s commitment to innovation and digitisation, as per a press release.

This high-tech solution will enable UBL to execute import and export transactions in a highly automated environment while conducting Anti-Money Laundering (AML) checks with greater flexibility, mitigate operational and compliance issues and facilitate data-driven decision-making across key departments, improving service standards, customer experience and reducing risk levels.

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, April 17th, 2023