Neighborhood News Digest – 24 July 2023

Afghanistan

Toll in Afghanistan flash floods jumps to 26 killed, 40 missing – The Hindu

The death toll from overnight flash floods caused by torrential rain in central Afghanistan has risen to 26, with more than 40 people missing, officials said Sunday. Shafiullah Rahimi, spokesman for the State Ministry for Disaster Management, said a total of 31 people had been killed nationwide in floods since Friday and extensive damage had been caused to property and farmland. Click here to read... [2]

US is obstacle to Afghanistan’s international recognition: Taliban – The Print

Taliban-appointed defence minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid said that he considered the United States as an obstacle to the international recognition of Afghanistan, ToloNews reported. In an interview with an Arabic news television channel, Mujahid said that the Taliban has met the requirements for recognition but that some countries, under pressure from the United States, don’t recognise Afghanistan. Click here to read... [3]

Bangladesh

S&P lowers Bangladesh's outlook to negative from stable - Investing.com

Ratings on Tuesday lowered Bangladesh's outlook to negative from stable, citing risks its external liquidity position could deteriorate in the next year, while foreign exchange reserves remain under pressure. The ratings agency expects the economy to expand between 6-6.4% over the next three years. Bangladesh's GDP growth fell to 6.03% in the financial year ended June 2023. Click here to read... [4]

Japan to sign EPA with Bangladesh, increase economic ties - Asia News Network

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura met with Bangladeshi economy-related ministers and agreed to accelerate a joint study for signing a bilateral economic partnership agreement (EPA) during his visit to the country on Sunday. It is the first time that a sitting Japanese economy, trade and industry minister has made an official visit to Bangladesh. Nishimura met with Bangladeshi Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi and Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun, and they agreed on the need to strengthen economic relations between Japan and Bangladesh. The two countries made a pact to conduct a joint study for signing an EPA in December last year. Click here to read... [5]

Bhutan

RuPay Card issuance surpasses 10,000 mark in Bhutan – Business Today

The National Payments Corporation of India's (NPCI) international arm, NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL), announced on July 24 that it has issued over 10,000 RuPay cards, a global card payment network from India in Bhutan. Apart from Bhutan, Singapore, UAE and Nepal have already operationalized RuPay cards. Click here to read... [6]

Tax revenue projected to grow by 40 percent in current fiscal year – Kuensel

The finance ministry has projected the country’s tax revenue to grow by 40 percent in the current fiscal year, 2023-24, from fiscal year 2021-22. Tax revenue, according to the budget report 2022-23, will grow to Nu 31.03 billion in this fiscal year from Nu 22.1 billion in the previous fiscal year with anticipated improvement in economic conditions. The tax revenue was estimated at Nu 25.43 billion in the last fiscal year 2022-23. Click here to read... [7]

Maldives

India And Maldives Reinforce Counter-terrorism Cooperation And Sign Immigration MoU

India and the Maldives on Monday strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms, including cross-border terrorism, as both countries reaffirmed counter-terrorism cooperation as an important aspect of maintaining security in the strategically vital Indian Ocean Region. Click here to read... [8]

Maldives Election Commission In Turmoil Ahead Of Poll

The Maldives Election Commission has sacked its chief ahead of presidential polls in September, an official said Monday, triggering opposition fears it would be able to hold a free and fair vote. Fuwad Thowfeek, the president of the five-member Elections Commission, was removed following a majority no-trust resolution, the official told AFP. Click here to read... [9]

Myanmar

Myanmar Crisis, ASEAN’s Soft View and Diplomacy

The week of mid-July has been eventful and captivating for ASEAN-watchers, with several significant meetings taking place. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) hosted a series of meetings, including the 56th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, 13th East Asia Summit (EAS) Foreign Ministers Meeting, 24th ASEAN Plus Three (APT) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference (PMC 10+1) Sessions with Dialogue Partners, trilateral meetings, and the 30th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) meeting in July 2023. Click here to read... [10]

NUG launches online bank to support fight against Myanmar junta

Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) has announced the soft launch of its Spring Development Bank (SDB), an online bank that aims to serve the needs of the anti-regime resistance movement, dubbed the Spring Revolution. At a press conference held last Thursday, Tin Tun Naing, the NUG’s minister of planning, finance and investment, said that the SDB—Myanmar’s first digital bank—would be operational from July 22. Click here to read... [11]

Nepal

Prime Minister Dahal underscores importance of school meals at UN meet – The Kathmandu Post

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Monday highlighted the importance and need for school meals at the United Nations Food Systems 2023 held in Italy. Speaking at the multinational event, Dahal emphasised the need to address the setbacks, in all sectors, hindering the realisation of all sustainable development goals, particularly zero hunger. Click here to read... [12]

Nepal’s ruling Maoist party members begin visit to India as part of ‘Know BJP’ programme – The Hindu

A five-member delegation of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) began its six-day India visit, from July 23 to 28, at the invitation of the BJP. The delegation led by Pampha Bhusal will spend two days in Uttarakhand and comes one and half months after the party leader and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ visited India. Click here to read... [13]

Pakistan

New arrest warrant issued for former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan: Geo News – The Hindu

The Election Commission of Pakistan on July 24 directed the Islamabad police to arrest former prime minister Imran Khan and produce him before it on July 25 in a case linked to contempt of the top electoral body. Irked by Mr. Khan’s persistent absence from the hearings, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) instructed the Islamabad IG to arrest the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief for his failure to appear in the contempt case. Click here to read... [14]

Pakistan raises electricity prices under IMF deal: PM Shehbaz Sharif – Hindustan Times

Consumers of up to 200 units - 63% of the total - would be exempt from the tariff increase and another 31% would qualify for a partial subsidy. Pakistan has increased its power tariffs again under an International Monetary Fund deal, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Monday, part of moves to reduce unsustainable public debt in the power and gas sector. Click here to read... [15]

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Rupee Goes From Asia’s Best to Worst in Three Weeks - Bloomberg

The Sri Lankan rupee has turned into Asia’s worst-performing currency from being the best in the first half of the year, and is poised to extend losses amid headwinds from interest-rate cuts and loosening of import controls. Click here to read... [16]

Still incomplete: on India-Sri Lanka ties and their vision - The Hindu

With a joint statement on economic cooperation, India and Sri Lanka outlined a forward-looking vision for their relations. The statement, entitled “Promoting Connectivity, Catalysing Prosperity: India-Sri Lanka Economic Partnership Vision”, released after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe in Delhi last week, lays out the vision in five areas: maritime, air, energy, trade and people-to-people initiatives. Click here to read... [17]