Neighborhood News Digest- 24 July 2024

Afghanistan

Otunbayeva: Women Remain Integral Part of UN Operations-Tolo News

The UN Secretary General’s special representative and head of UNAMA Roza Otunbayeva said that women have remained an integral part of whatever the UN does. Speaking at the “Islamic Finance Week” launched by UNDP Afghanistan, the UNAMA head reiterated that they were promoting meaningful participation of women in all aspects of the financial and economic sectors. Click here to read... [2]

International Exhibition in China Boosts Kabul-Beijing Trade Relations-Tolo News

Several participants at the opening day of the 28th International Exhibition in China have stated that this exhibition plays a significant role in the development of commercial relations between Kabul and Beijing. The 28th International Exhibition in China, with the participation of Afghan businessmen, opened yesterday (Tuesday). Click here to read... [3]

Bangladesh

Quota in govt jobs: New system applicable for all grades – The Daily Star

In a major reform to the quota system in public jobs, the government yesterday issued a circular, taking merit-based recruitment in civil service to 93 percent from the existing 44 percent. The rest seven percent will come from various quotas. Click here to read... [4]

Broadband internet restored in selected areas - The Daily Star

Broadband internet connections were restored on a limited scale yesterday after 5 days of complete countrywide blackout amid the violence over quota protest. The area-based partial restoration of the broadband service will be on a trial basis, with priorities initially given to the banking, commercial, technology, exports, outsourcing service providers, and media outlets, Zunaid Ahmad Palak, state minister for Posts, Telecommunications and ICT told a briefing at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) yesterday. Click here to read... [5]

Army Chief: Soldiers will be on streets until normalcy returns – Dhaka Tribune

Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman on Tuesday said soldiers will patrol the streets until the return of normalcy in the country. He said this during a call on with President Mohammed Shahabuddin at Bangabhaban at noon, President’s Press Secretary Joynal Abedin told reporters. Click here to read... [6]

Bangladesh Student Group Leader Suspends Protests For 2 More Days – NDTV

The leader of student demonstrations in Bangladesh that spiraled into widespread violence extended a suspension of protests for 48 more hours on Tuesday. Click here to read... [7]

Bhutan

Bhutan King commends Adani's Mundra, Khavda projects-Deccan Herald

A high-level delegation from Bhutan led by its King and the Prime Minister on Tuesday visited Adani Group's flagship infrastructure project sites at Mundra and Khavda as part of their two-day visit to Gujarat. Click here to read... [8]

At ₹2,068 crore, Bhutan gets lion’s share of India’s external aid portfolio-Hindustan Times

Bhutan again garnered the largest share of the Indian government’s external aid portfolio with an outlay of ₹2,068 crore in the budget for 2024-25. In keeping with the government’s “Neighborhood First” policy, Bhutan was allocated ₹2,068 crore from the total external aid portfolio of ₹4883.56 crore, including soft loans and grants, for foreign countries and projects. Click here to read... [9]

Maldives

Maldives Govt seek US help for wider e-commerce access for Maldivian entrepreneurs – Sun Online

Maldives government held talks with the US Ambassador seeking help to facilitate wider access to e-commerce platforms for Maldivian entrepreneurs. Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed met with the US Ambassador following his recent Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) talks. Click here to read... [10]

China poised to offer new cooperation opportunities to Maldives – Sun Online

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on July 23, has said the Asian ally is ready to offer new opportunities for cooperation to the Maldives and the world. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee made the remarks during a meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs Moosa Zameer in Beijing. China’s Foreign Minister, while highlighting the recently concluded third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, said the over 300 reform measures put forward the party was a clear indication of China’s readiness to expand its high level of opening up. Click here to read... [11]

Myanmar

Myanmar to send senior official to ASEAN meeting in Laos: sources- Kyodo News

Myanmar's military government will dispatch a senior official to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers meeting in Laos later this week, diplomatic sources told Kyodo News on Tuesday. It will be the third consecutive attendance of a senior official from the junta of Myanmar, an ASEAN member, at the regional grouping's meeting in Laos, the current chair, following a foreign ministers meeting in January and a defense ministers meeting in March. Click here to read... [12]

Myanmar Delegation Including Hardline Pro-Junta Politicians Visits China - The Irrawady

Representatives of four political parties including the military’s proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) are on a goodwill visit to China, at the invitation of the Communist Party of China. Among the USDP representatives are a number with reputations as staunch pro-junta hardliners. The USDP delegation is led by party vice-chair former Major General Hla Tun, who served as President’s Office minister in Thein Sein’s quasi-civilian government. The delegation also includes “Bullet” Hla Swe and Maung Myint. Click here to read... [13]

ASEAN ministers seek Myanmar breakthrough with 'troika' model - Asia Nikkei

Foreign ministers from Southeast Asian countries are convening in Laos this week for a series of meetings as the shadow of regional instability, underscored by civil unrest in Myanmar and tensions in the South China Sea, looms large. Laos, this year's chair for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, will host the gatherings in its capital, Vientiane, with the bloc's main ministerial meeting scheduled for Thursday. Expanded meetings, which include ASEAN's key partners like China, Japan and the U.S., are scheduled through Saturday. Click here to read... [14]

Nepal

Khusbu Oli: Nepal is facing severe problems of knowledge crisis - Annapurna Express

Khusbu Oli, a young politician from the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, which holds 14 seats in Parliament, is making significant strides in national politics. As a young woman, she is actively engaged in party and national affairs, particularly through social media, where she debates and discusses with top politicians. Currently, she serves as a Central Committee member and deputy head of the party’s training department. ApEx spoke with her about her experiences and vision for Nepal. Excerpts. Click here to read... [15]

China holds South Asia meet minus India, Nepal foreign secretary to address keynote - First Post

Continuing its South Asia outreach, which is particularly aimed at circling India with its allies, China is currently holding the 5th China-South Asia Cooperation Forum (CSACF) meeting in Kunming, Yunnan. The six-day meet began on Tuesday (July 23) and will conclude on July 28. Nepal, which has just seen a regime change, with pro-China KP Sharma Oli becoming the prime minister last week, has sent its foreign secretary, Sewa Lamsal, to deliver a keynote address at the forum on Wednesday. Click here to read... [16]

India increases grant to Nepal by INR 500 million, Totaling INR 7 billion for current FY - My Republica

India has announced a grant amount of INR 7 billion to be provided to Nepal in the current Fiscal Year (FY), which is more than INR 500 million of the last FY. Unveiling the full budget for FY 2024/25 on Tuesday, the Indian government announced to revise the grant to be provided to its northern neighbor. The Indian government has announced a new budget after the formation of a new coalition government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Click here to read... [17]

Pakistan

Pakistan to enhance defence, economic ties with Turkmenistan- Dawn

Pakistan and Turkmenistan on Tuesday agreed to intensify joint efforts to further expand and deepen bilateral cooperation in defense, economic and political domains. The two countries also agreed to develop closer economic engagement in priority areas of trade and investment, energy, connectivity, and information technology. Click here to read... [18]

Govt has ‘made up its mind’ on PTI ban: Tarar-Dawn

In the wake of what is being seen by many as an admission of guilt by Imran Khan, the government’s efforts to ban the opposition PTI from the political mainstream seem to be gathering steam.A day earlier, media reports said the PTI founder had, while speaking to journalists at Adiala jail, acknowledged that he had called for a protest outside the GHQ if he was arrested. Click here to read... [19]

Govt establishes special courts to tackle 'digital terrorism'-The Express Tribune

The federal government has designated special courts in Islamabad under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), 2016, to try “digital terrorists” and those allegedly involved in spreading “anti-state propaganda” through digital content in the virtual world, it emerged on Tuesday. Click here to read... [20]

Sri Lanka

Supreme Court prevents Deshabandu from functioning as IGP – Daily Mirror

As Sri Lanka awaits the removal from ‘restrictive default’, a status discouraging the potential investors, experts are optimistic about the nation’s ability to move beyond this ranking. The Supreme Court today issued an interim order restraining Deshabandu Tennakoon from functioning as the Inspector General of Police. Click here to read... [21]

First half merchandise exports top US$ 6 bn - Daily Mirror

Sri Lanka’s merchandise export performance for the first half of the year (1H24) totalled US$ 6.098 billion, a 3.87 percent growth Year-on-Year (YoY) when compared with the corresponding period in 2023. Click here to read... [22]

Presidential election date before Saturday – Daily Mirror

The National Election Commission is slated to announce date for the 2024 Presidential Election before Saturday (27). The sources said the date is likely to be announced on Friday (26). Click here to read... [23]