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November 19, 2022: National Current Affairs
1. UN climate summit drags on amid funding deadlock
• UN climate talks were extended by a day on November 18, 2022, in an effort to break a deadlock as nations tussled over funding for developing countries battered by weather disasters and ambition on curbing global warming, with wealthy and developing nations struggling to find common ground on creating the fund only hours before the summit was scheduled to end.
• In addition, a campaign by the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu for the world`s top court to take a stance on protecting people from climate change gained momentum on Friday, winning the support of almost half the nearly 200 countries at a global summit.
• In total, 86 countries gave their support to a resolution to ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to clarify what obligations governments have to protect their own populations and others
2. Pakistan no longer faces default risk, NA told
• Amid claims by former prime minister Imran Khan that default is staring Pakistan in the face and reports about delay in formal talks with IMF on the ninth review of $7bn loan programme, Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Aisha Ghaus Pasha assured the nation on November 18, 2022 that the country was not facing any danger of going to default.
• The minister held out the assurance in the National Assembly when Mussarat Rafiq Mahesar of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) put a direct question to her, `If Pakistan is going to default?` `Alhamdulillah [Thank God], there is no such possibility. Yes, we were worried when we took over the government [in April] because at that time the IMF programme was suspended and the avenues of getting external finances were closed for us,` said the minister.
• However, she claimed, the situation had improved a lot after the government took some `very difficult decisions` and revival of the IMF programme
3. Finance minister briefs `straight-faced` Alvi on govt economic plan
• Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on November 18, 2022 called on President Dr Arif Alvi and briefed him on the government`s plans to provide relief to the masses hit by unprecedented inflation.
• According to a press release of the Presidency issued here, Mr Dar and President Alvi discussed the overall economic and financial outlook of the country.
• `In the meeting held at the Aiwan-i-Sadr, the finance minister briefed the president on various steps taken by the government to provide relief to the general public, particularly the unprivileged population and the flood-affected people,` the press release said.
• `Various matters concerning finance and economy also came under discussion,` it added
4. Investors withdraw $660m from Naya Pakistan Certificates in six months
• The foreign investors withdrew $660 million from Naya Pakistan Certificates (NPC) during the last six months, compounding the hardship for the country already f acing a serious problem of falling foreign exchange reserves.
• The withdrawal reflects the growing trust deficit in the country`s ability to make payments, though it has yet not defaulted on the external front and is making timely payments of all foreign obligations.
• However, the weak position of foreign exchange reserves amid poor economic growth with rising speculations about the growing default risks has made the situation worse. Financial market experts and independent economists have been warning that the prolonged political uncertainty is taking a heavy toll on the economy
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5. ECC allows TCP to import urea from China and Azerbaijan
• The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of Cabinet on Friday allowed the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) to import 160,000 tonnes of urea from China and Azerbaijan under the government-to-government arrangement (G2G).
• The ECC meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, discussed the summary submitted by the Ministry of Industries and Production for the procurement of 200,000 tonnes of urea to replenish the strategic reserves.
• The Ministry of Industries also informed about various options already negotiated regarding the import from Chinese firms who have committed to supply urea at the lowest rate
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