South Asia Investor Review

Access to abundant and cheap electricity is essential for running a modern competitive economy. The rapidly growing power demand for generative AI data centers makes it even more important. The best way to ensure it is in switching to renewable energy sources. That is why Pakistan is in the midst of a renewable power boom. It is ramping up generation of clean energy with solar, hydro, wind and nuclear power. 13 gigawatts of  solar panels  have been imported in the first half of this year alone. Another 10 gigawatts of  hydroelectric  power projects are under construction for completion by 2030, bringing the total hydropower capacity to 20 gigawatts. Pakistan's total nuclear energy production capacity rose to  3,620 MW , when the country's sixth  nuclear power  plant opened two years ago. Pakistan and China have recently signed a $4.8 billion deal to build another 1,200 MW nuclear power plant. There are 36 private  wind projects  pr...

Generative  artificial intelligence  (GenAI) has taken the world by a storm. It has drawn the attention of academia, businesses and governments around the world.  This technology is expected to transform almost every sector from business and commerce to government, industries and defense. Are Pakistanis aware of its potential?  Is Pakistan getting ready for what is being described as the "AI Revolution"? Let's examine the answers to these questions.  AI awareness is rising among Pakistan’s general public. The country ranks third with 76% of people being aware of ChatGPT, according to Stanford University’s  AI Index Report 2024  covering a survey of 31 countries, including the United States, Europe and East Asia.  India (82%), Kenya (81%), Indonesia (76%), and Pakistan (76%) have the highest awareness rates in the world.  Brazil and Canada have 64% awareness, UK and Japan 61%, China, Germany and France 60% and the US 55%. Poland reported the l...

Pakistan's benchmark KSE-100 index hit an all-time high after the announcement of the $7 billion IMF bailout deal today. Economic indicators such as inflation, exports and remittances are also showing significant improvement as well. Speaking to reporters after the IMF deal,  the Fund Managing Director  Kristalina Georgieva acknowledged progress made by Pakistan. She said  "The economy is on the sound path. Growth is up and inflation is down". The  KSE-100 index rose in early trade to a record high of 82,905.73 points, before giving up those gains later in the day to close 0.7% down at 81,657. It still represents an annual gain of nearly 100%.  Pakistani Stock Market Outperforms Asian Peers. Source: Bloomberg Pakistan rupee has remained essentially stable at around Rs. 277 to a US dollar over the last year. Inflation has come down from 37% last year to less than 10% this year.  Exports have climbed 10.54% ($2.921 billion) to $30.645 billion during the fisc...

Last year, California lawmakers voted 31-5 to approve the first state-wide bill (SB 403) explicitly banning  caste discrimination . The bill, enjoying broad support among California voters, was sponsored by Senator Aisha Wahab.  It was vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom under pressure from wealthy political donors belonging to the Hindutva lobby.   Senator Aisha Wahab with Supporters of California Law to Ban Caste Discrimination Hindutva Lobby: The Hindutva lobby's opposition to the California anti-caste discrimination bill was spearheaded by Ramesh Kapur, a wealthy Massachusetts entrepreneur.  “If you want to be our next president, veto the bill”, Kapur told the governor in no uncertain terms, according to a recent investigative piece written by British journalist Andrew Cockburn and published in the  Harper magazine .  Here's an excerpt from the article:  "The ultimatum was decisive. Kapur said that Newsom emailed him three hours before going publi...

International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has ranked Pakistan (score 96.69/100) among top tier countries for cybersecurity in 2024.  Out of a maximum score of 20, Pakistan received 20 for legal measures, 18.21 for technical measures, 20 for organization measures, 20 for capacity development and 18.48 for cooperative measures, according to the Global Cybersecurity Index 2024 report released by the ITU.  Pakistan Cybersecurity Scores 2024. Source: ITU Pakistan's tier one cybersecurity ranking is a big improvement from its 79th rank (score 64.88 from 100) it got in the cybersecurity ranking by the ITU in 2020 . Four years ago, Pakistan scored 15.97 on legal measures, 12.26 on technical measures, 11.01 on organizational measures, 17.25 on capacity development and 8.38 on cooperative measures.  Increasing penetration and rapid growth of the Internet user base in Pakistan has brought in a lot of user complaints of bullying and fraud, necessitating government action, includ...

Semi-arid Pakistan, with its farmlands predominantly  irrigated  by the world's largest contiguous canal system, has experienced an increasing amount of annual rains and floods for several years. Even the desert regions of the country, like the vast  Thar desert  straddling India-Pakistan border, have recently been turning green. Now a study has found that  "the mean rainfall over the semi-arid northwest parts of India and Pakistan has increased by 10%–50% during 1901–2015 and is expected to increase by 50%–200%" by the end of the current century. The authors of this study published by  Advanced Earth and Space Science  conclude as follows: "While an adaptation strategy to increased hydrological disasters is a must, harnessing the augmented rainfall would lead to a substantial boost in food productivity, bringing transformative changes in the socio-economic condition of people in the region".  Annual Summer Monsoon Rainfall in Millimeters For 1979...

Recent experience in California has shown that changes in incentives have a huge impact on residential adoption of solar power technology. Since the introduction of NEM 3.0 last year, new rooftop solar business in California has dramatically slowed. New residential solar installation applications have plunged 80%, according to  Cal Matters . This has driven many solar installers out of business. The business that remains is mostly focused on adding batteries to existing solar installations.  Impact of California NEM 3.0 on Solar Business. Source: Cal Matters California Net Energy Metering (NEM 3.0) was launched last year after heavy lobbying by the state's utility companies like PGE and SoCal Edison. It has reduced payments for the excess power exported by the consumer to the grid by 75%. This change means that the consumer is better off with storage batteries to maximize self-consumption of the power generated by the solar panels. Companies such as Tesla Solar with its PowerW...