From the News, Nation, Dawn, Pakistan Observer, Daily Times, Frontier Post, Nawa-i-Waqt (Urdu) and Jang (Urdu) newspapers                                                                            

29 January, 2009

LOCAL NEWS  

ECONOMIC 

-     Islamabad (APP) Government of Japan will provide US $ 4.7 million to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for the eradication of polio in Pakistan.  (The News, p-13; Daily Times, p-B3; The Frontier Post, p-9; The Nation, p-13)

-     Islamabad (Haq Nawaz) Otake Tomoharu, Chief Representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) here, Sardar Aseff, Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, emphasized the importance of agriculture in the country’s economy, mainly focusing on high –value agriculture and agriculture terms and trade. (The Nation, p-17)

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

POLITICAL

-          Tokyo (AFP) Japan and Iran agreed on Wednesday to work together for the reconstruction of Afghanistan, but Tehran rejected Tokyo’s call for a suspension of its nuclear programme. (Daily Times, p-A5; The News, p-11)

-          Tokyo (Agencies) Tokyo has asked the Russian coast guard to promptly release 10 Japanese crew members seized aboard their fishing boat while off Japan’s northern coast, the top government spokesman said Wednesday. (The Frontier Post, p-5)

MISC

-          Tokyo (Picture AFP) Visitors crowd the booth of Japan’s electronics giant Panasonic at an electronics exhibition. (The Nation, p-17)