Singapore ranks No 2 globally for attracting best talent, only Asian nation in top 20

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Singapore ranks No 2 globally for attracting best talent, only Asian nation in top 20

Singapore ranks No 2 globally for attracting best talent, only Asian nation in top 20

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2022

The world’s nations are fighting an intense battle for the best workers, and Singapore has yet again been ranked the second-best country to find them.

The country comes just behind Switzerland but ahead of 131 countries, according to the Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2022, which was published on Thursday.

It is the only Asian state to make the European-dominated top 20 in the list.

The latest report, published by business school Insead and Washington-based Portulans Institute, is sponsored by the Temasek-linked Human Capital Leadership Institute.

The 133 countries rated own 98 per cent of the world’s economic output and accounted for more than 93 per cent of its population, the authors wrote.

They added that they aim to help policymakers, investors and recruiters make sense of labour trends from a global perspective.

Singapore has clinched second place every year since the index’s first edition in 2013, except in 2020, when it slipped one spot.

Switzerland hogged first place from the start, and the United States had been the other podium companion since 2017 until this year when it got nudged down by Denmark, which took third place.

The study also carries a city ranking, where Singapore ranks sixth, behind American cities San Francisco, Boston, Seattle and Switzerland’s Zurich and Lausanne. Again, it is the only Asian city to be in the top 20.

Do such rankings have any practical impact? Yes, said Helmi Yusoff from global consultancy Mercer.

“While studies like these are broad, they offer useful insights to global workers looking to relocate to another country,” he said.

This year’s 336-page electronic volume draws on 69 macroeconomic and country-level variables, and rates how countries attract overseas talent and help local workers with regulatory and business environments, as well as how states groom workers through education and training, and retain them with living and sustainability practices.

The impact these efforts have on vocational and technical workers, as well as professional and managerial workers, is collated.

Singapore topped the world for highly skilled workers, and ranked among the world’s five best in every aspect – except one: It took the 36th spot for retaining talent.

The report’s co-editor and a distinguished fellow at Insead, Bruno Lanvin, said: “Talent retention includes both the ability to attract talent from abroad and to offer sufficient opportunities for locally born talent to stay or return home after studying or working abroad. In this respect, Singapore suffers from the small size of its domestic market.”

Lauren Huntington, an employee experience solution strategist at Qualtrics, said the firm’s findings consistently showed that less than one in three workers in Singapore is satisfied or fully satisfied with his workplace experience.

“When you consider it can cost an organisation six to nine months of an employee’s salary to replace them – which is likely to be even higher for international workers – and the impact of losing high performers, the need for employers to take action to retain their best talent is even greater, especially as the country works to strengthen its position as a key hub for businesses across Asia,” she said.

Yusoff said organisations can work on getting what workers really want.

“According to the 2022 Mercer’s Global Talent Trends Report, six in 10 employees would join or stay with an organisation only if they can work flexibly or remotely,” he said.

However, talent retention is not a blunt strategy.

“More organisations are targeting to retain employees who are mission-critical … instead of looking to retain all talent across the board,” Yusoff added.

This year’s publication highlights the rise of China. The Asian giant has moved steadily up from 45th place in 2019 to 36th position this year, and “is now the most talent-competitive upper-middle-income country in the world”, it said.

Lanvin, meanwhile, said China has been adept at matching its workforce skills with market demand, such as honing an education system that answers to the needs of the economy.

“Especially impressive has been the ever higher quality of its secondary and tertiary education,” he said, adding that Indonesia seems ready to take a similar path.

The report said the talent gap between rich and poor economies continues to widen and will be amplified by factors such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the pandemic.

“Three in five workers live in countries where labour incomes have not returned to pre-pandemic levels, the gender gap in hours worked has widened, and women in informal employment have been most affected; and the impact of Covid-19 is stronger and lasting longer in poorer economies,” said the report.

“Covid-19 taught us many important lessons in this regard. One of them is that in times of crisis, the weakest are the ones who suffer most,” it added.

Geopolitical tensions have brought forth nationalistic and protectionist attitudes, Lanvin said, and smaller economies have the most to lose from a collapse of trade, investment and talent flows.

He added that one challenge was to define what tomorrow’s jobs would be amid a world of uncertainties, and another, was to involve younger generations in future workforce policies and strategies.

The Straits Times

Asia News Network

Tomato, sugarcane tyres hit the road as manufacturers rev up moves to save environment

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Tomato, sugarcane tyres hit the road as manufacturers rev up moves to save environment

Tomato, sugarcane tyres hit the road as manufacturers rev up moves to save environment

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2022

Top tyre makers are accelerating their development of tyres made with plant materials. Manufacturers are reviewing not only the environmental performance of their automobiles while on the road, but also the raw materials, parts and components used to produce vehicles. Producing environmentally friendly tyres is likely to give automakers an edge in the market.

Tomato tyres

Sumitomo Rubber Industries, which sells the Dunlop brand, has been working to manufacture a new synthetic rubber by breeding rubber trees that contain tomato-derived enzymes. As tomato enzymes have a strength-enhancing effect, this new rubber is expected to reduce the wear of the tyres.

A director of the materials planning department at Sumitomo Rubber, said: “As interest in decarbonisation is strong, the need [for such products] will increase further.” He said the company aims to put the new product on the market by the 2040s.

Tyres for automobiles are generally manufactured with compounds, whereby several kinds of rubber are mixed with such additives as reinforcing agents and coupling agents. Butadiene, one of the main raw materials, is often produced from naphtha, which is related to gasoline.

The Yokohama Rubber has developed a technology for producing butadiene from plants such as sugarcane and used it to make prototype tyres. In June, its racing team drove a vehicle equipped with these tyres in the US Hill Climb Race, in which automobiles compete on mountain roads, and completed the entire distance. The company has set a target of producing the new product on a commercial basis in 2034.

Stable supply a challenge

Global new car sales have been brisk, with demand for tyres also high.

According to Report Ocean, a US market research company, the automobile tyre market reached US$144.7 billion in 2021 and is expected to continue growing at a yearly average of 4 per cent from 2022 to 2030.

For global automakers, the environmental impact of manufacturing has been called into question, prompting them to seek more environmentally friendly parts and components.

Natural rubber is used as a raw material for tyres. But in Southeast Asia, where more than 90% of the main materials are grown, it is feared the resource will be depleted due to logging. In light of this, there are moves to find new plants that could replace existing rubber trees.

Bridgestone Corp is looking closely at a shrub called guayule, a plant native to North and Central America. Aiming to put it into commercial use in 2026, the rubber and tyre manufacturer has provided racing teams with tyres produced on an experimental basis.

An official in charge at Bridgestone said: “We want to make our business sustainable by using diversified natural resources.”

The challenge lies in how to procure it stably and in large quantities. Bridgestone, in collaboration with Kirin Holdings, which is researching hops in beer, has begun research on effectively cultivating guayule. As it will take a long time to improve the breed and cultivate it, they are also hurrying to create a system to develop farmland.

The Japan News

Asia News Network

Vietnam launches new attraction – paragliding over sunflower volcano

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Vietnam launches new attraction – paragliding over sunflower volcano

Vietnam launches new attraction – paragliding over sunflower volcano

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2022

Vietnam is offering visitors the chance to paraglide over the sunflower-carpeted slopes of an extinct volcano this month.

Tourists will take off for the first time during the annual Chu Dang Ya Wild Sunflower-Volcano Festival in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai from November 11-17.

Festival-goers can get an eagle’s view of the majestic mountains clothed in wild yellow sunflowers while flying with a professional paraglider.

“Paragliding is a new attraction expected to lure more tourists to this year’s festival,” said the Chu Pah District’s head of Culture and Information Unit, Nguyen Minh Duc.

The Hanoi Paragliding Club has been conducting safety flights over the extinct Chu Dang Ya volcano in preparation for the festival.

The club’s pilots said Chu Dang Ya satisfies all requirements for paragliding, including weather, wind, and especially the beautiful scenery of the Central Highland region.

Next Friday and Saturday (November 11-12), the Son Tra Paragliding Club will give paragliding and paramotoring performances over the volcano.

Vietnam launches new attraction – paragliding over sunflower volcano

Along with paragliding, the festival will feature traditional games such as tug-of-war, stilt walking, and sack races. Other activities include cross-country running past famous sightseeing spots and a walking trek through the sunflower meadows to conquer the peaks of Chu Dang Ya and Chu Nam.

Gong performances and demonstrations of traditional crafts by local Jrai and Ba Na ethnic people will also be on show.

Artisans from 14 communities in Chu Pah District will gather to show off their skills in bamboo and brocade weaving, and carving of wood and traditional music instruments.

Vietnam launches new attraction – paragliding over sunflower volcano

A rice-harvest celebration – one of the most important rituals of the Jrai – will be held in La Gri Village in the foothills of Chu Dang Ya on November 12.

Local specialities and famous agricultural products will also be on sale.

Viet Nam News

Asia News Network

Sydney’s underground car-park farm paves way to sustainable agriculture

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Sydney's underground car-park farm paves way to sustainable agriculture

Sydney’s underground car-park farm paves way to sustainable agriculture

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2022

In the heart of Sydney’s central business district, Noah Verin rides through the streets to a dark corner of an underground car park that houses his farm, Urban Green.

Verin, a former chef turned farmer, started the microgreens and herb business in early 2020 just before the coronavirus pandemic with around 40 different species growing side by side under lights and fans for ventilation.

“I always knew that when people heard the story, of the fact that there’s a farm in a basement in Barangaroo growing food, that that would like strike people,” Verin, who also holds an environmental science degree, told Reuters from the car park farm.

Verin aims to have Urban Green carbon neutral by 2026, with a four-prong approach including energy use, growing medium, packaging and deliveries.

Using LED lights that have already halved in efficiency since the business started and a coconut coir growing medium for the plants, it’s the packaging and deliveries that Verin is most proud of.

Although most deliveries are done in a van, some deliveries are made on a bike with an attached specifically built trailer with Verin wanting to use ebikes with the trailers to make deliveries in the future.

Sydney's underground car-park farm paves way to sustainable agriculture

At one of Verin’s clients, Sydney restaurant Botswana Butchery in Martin Place, head chef Logan Campbell appreciates many aspects of the Urban Green business.

“Noah’s product comes in still alive, still in its pot and also he doesn’t use a lot of plastics or any throwaway products like that so it’s all very sustainable which I like,” Campbell told Reuters from the restaurant kitchen.

As he snipped Urban Green’s nasturtium leaves to add the finishing touch to a dish, Campbell added that 10 years ago he would not have believed he would be buying his greens from a car park farm but today it’s different.

With the 2022 United Nations Climate Change ConferenceCOP27, to be held from November 6 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, Verin says that while vertical farms have been seen as a potential answer to the food crisis, now the conversation has shifted to how those same farms can also be sustainable.

Sydney's underground car-park farm paves way to sustainable agriculture

“I think the more that happens and the more investment gets put into ethical businesses, ones that are really trying to do the right thing then it will become a much more potent solution. We are definitely on the way,” Verin added.

Verin aims to one-day open car park farms for products such as chili’s and strawberries and more car park micro green and herb farms, changing people’s perceptions of farming – one microgreen at a time.

Reuters

Ousted Pakistan PM Imran Khan stable after what aides call an assassination attempt

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Ousted Pakistan PM Imran Khan stable after what aides call an assassination attempt

Ousted Pakistan PM Imran Khan stable after what aides call an assassination attempt

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2022

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan was shot in the shin on Thursday, when his anti-government protest convoy came under attack in what his aides say was a clear assassination attempt.

Khan, who was ousted in April, was six days into a protest procession bound for Islamabad. He was standing and waving to thousands of cheering supporters from the top of a container truck when the shots rang out. They were in Wazirabad, nearly 200 kilometres from the capital.

Several members in his convoy were wounded in the attack and Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said a suspect had been arrested.

“It was a clear assassination attempt. Khan was hit but he’s stable. There was a lot of bleeding,” Fawad Chaudhry, a spokesperson for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, told Reuters.

“If the shooter had not been stopped by people there, the entire PTI leadership would have been wiped out.”

Khan is out of danger, said physician Dr Faisal Sultan, who oversees the Lahore hospital where Khan is being treated. He told journalists that initial scans and X-rays showed bullet fragments in Khan’s leg.

Ousted Pakistan PM Imran Khan stable after what aides call an assassination attempt

Police have yet to comment on the attack, which drew condemnation from the White House.

In a video statement, Asad Umar, one of Khan’s top aides, said the former PM believes that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and intelligence official Maj-General Faisal Naseer were behind the attack. Umar did not provide any evidence to back the allegation.

Sanaullah, speaking to journalists alongside Aurangzeb, rejected the allegations and said the Sharif-led coalition government demanded an independent high-powered investigation. Sharif also condemned the shooting and ordered an immediate investigation.

The military’s media wing did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the allegation against Naseer.

In a previous statement, the military called the shooting “highly condemnable”. Khan, 70, who was once a cricket star, had accused the military of backing plans to oust him from power. Last week, the military held a news conference to deny the claims.

Pervaiz Elahi, the chief minister of Punjab, the province in which Khan’s party is in power and where the shooting occurred, said he was forming a joint investigation team. Elahi said it initially appeared that there were two assailants.

“I heard a burst of shots after which I saw Imran Khan and his aides fall down on the truck,” witness Qazzafi Butt told Reuters.

“Later, a gunman shot a single shot but was grabbed by an activist of Khan’s party.”

In purported footage of the shooting, being run by multiple channels but unverified by Reuters, a man with a handgun is grabbed from behind by one of the people at the gathering. He then tries to flee.

TV channels showed a suspected shooter, who looked to be in his twenties or thirties. He said he wanted to kill Khan and had acted alone.

“He [Khan] was misleading the people, and I couldn’t bear it,” the suspect said in the video. The information minister confirmed the footage was recorded by police.

No one has been charged with the attack yet.

Khan, who after his removal from office was convicted by Pakistan’s election commission for allegedly selling state gifts unlawfully, charges that he denied, had been whipping up large crowds on his way to Islamabad in a campaign to topple Sharif’s government.

One member of Khan’s party said there were reports one person had been killed in the attack.

The latest news on what’s happening in the region

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The latest news on what's happening in the region

The latest news on what’s happening in the region

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2022

Check out what’s hot in the region on November 4, as The Nation puts together headlines from members of Asia News Network (ANN). Click to read more:

ANN news highlights: Fri, Nov 4, 2022
Bringing Asia Closer


Assassination Pakistan I
In leaked video, suspect says he targeted Imran Khan because he was “misleading the public” as former PM survives assassination attempt – Dawn

Assassination Pakistan II
Editorial: Tragedy averted – Dawn
 

Space China
Rice from space promises robust new varieties – China Daily
 

N Korea 
N.Korea fires three missiles after denouncing allies for extending aerial drills – Korea Herald
 

Tragedy S Korea 
2nd officer suspended over Itaewon failures – Korea Herald
 

Defence Japan
Govt. to create special budget category to develop air, sea ports for defense purposes – The Japan News
 

Pollution India 
Severe air pollution chokes Delhi Reuters for The Daily Star
 

Diplomacy China-Germany
Scholz visit to expand German ties with China – China Daily
 

War in Ukraine 
Why South Korea should care about Russia’s war in Ukraine – Korea Herald
 

Corruption Bangladesh
Opinion: The art of bribery | The Daily Star
 

Religion Cambodia
Interview: Buddhist Institute pursues 100-year mission | Phnom Penh Post
 

Business Vietnam
LEGO Group starts construction on US$1 billion factory in Viet Nam – Vietnam News
 

Innovation Japan
Tires made with tomato, sugar cane hit the road as manufacturers eye environment – The Japan News
 

Talent Singapore
Singapore ranked second globally for best talent, only Asian nation in top 20 – Straits Times
 

Energy Cambodia
Huadian project starts ops in Cambodia – China Daily
 

Energy India
FM launches biggest-ever coal mine auction that will benefit twelve states – The Statesman

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan shot and wounded in ‘clear assassination’ attempt

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Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan shot and wounded in 'clear assassination' attempt

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan shot and wounded in ‘clear assassination’ attempt

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2022

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was shot in the shin on Thursday when his anti-government protest convoy came under attack in the east of the country in what his aides said was a clear assassination attempt.

Khan, ousted as prime minister in a parliamentary confidence vote in April, was six days into a protest procession bound for Islamabad, standing and waving to thousands of cheering supporters from the roof of a container truck when the shots rang out.

Several in his convoy were wounded in the attack in Wazirabad, nearly 200 km (120 miles) from the capital. Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said a suspect had been arrested.

“It was a clear assassination attempt. Khan was hit but he’s stable. There was a lot of bleeding,” Fawad Chaudhry, a spokesperson for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, told Reuters.

“If the shooter had not been stopped by people there, the entire PTI leadership would have been wiped out.”

In a statement, the military called the shooting “highly condemnable”. Khan, 70, had accused the military of backing the plan to oust him from power. Last week, the military held a news conference to deny the claims.

“I heard a burst of bullet shots after which I saw Imran Khan and his aides fall down on the truck,” witness Qazzafi Butt told Reuters.

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan shot and wounded in 'clear assassination' attempt
Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan shot and wounded in 'clear assassination' attempt

“Later, a gunman shot a single shot but was grabbed by an activist of Khan’s party.”

In purported footage of the shooting, being run by multiple channels but unverified by Reuters, a man with a handgun is grabbed from behind by one of the people at the gathering. He then tries to flee.

TV channels showed a suspected shooter, who looked to be in his twenties or thirties. He said he wanted to kill Khan and had acted alone.

“He (Khan) was misleading the people, and I couldn’t bear it,” the suspect said in the video. The information minister confirmed the footage was recorded by police.

No one had yet been charged with the attack.

Khan – who was after his removal from office convicted by Pakistan’s election commission of selling state gifts unlawfully, charges that he denied – had been whipping up large crowds on his way to Islamabad in a campaign to topple the government of rival Shehbaz Sharif.

Sharif condemned the shooting and ordered an immediate investigation.

One member of Khan’s party said there were reports one person had been killed in the attack.

Khan aide Chaudhry wrote on Twitter: “It was a well-planned assassination attempt on Imran Khan, the assassin planned to kill Imran Khan and leadership of PTI, it was not 9 MM it was burst from automatic weapon… It was narrow escape.”

PROTESTERS ON STREETS
Handsome and charismatic, Khan first grabbed international attention as a cricketer in the early 1970s.

First known as an aggressive fast-paced bowler with a distinctive leaping action, he went on to become one of the world’s best all-rounders and a hero in cricket-mad Pakistan, captaining a team of wayward stars with bleak prospects to one day World Cup victory in 1992.

His first wife Jemima Goldsmith, who lives in Britain, expressed relief on Twitter.

“The news we dread … Thank God he’s okay,” she wrote. “And thank you from his sons to the heroic man in the crowd who tackled the gunman.”

Pakistan has a long history of political violence. Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007 in a gun and bomb attack after holding an election rally in the city of Rawalpindi, next to Islamabad.

Her father and former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was hanged in the same city in 1979 after being deposed in a military coup.

Local media on Thursday showed footage of Khan waving to the crowd after being evacuated from his vehicle after the shooting as people ran and shouted.

He was taken to hospital in Lahore as protesters poured out on to streets in some parts of the country and PTI leaders demanded justice.

PTI colleague Faisal Javed, who was also wounded and had blood stains on his clothes, told Geo TV from the hospital: “Several of our colleagues are wounded. We heard that one of them is dead.”

Since being ousted, Khan has held rallies across Pakistan, stirring opposition against a government that is struggling to bring the economy out of the crisis that Khan’s administration left it in.

He had planned to lead the motorised caravan slowly northwards up the Grand Trunk Road to Islamabad, drawing more support along the way before entering the capital.

“I want that all of you participate. This is not for politics or personal gain, or to topple the government… this is to bring genuine freedom to the country,” Khan said in a video message on the eve of the march.

Reuters

Female Malaysian fishmonger has social media hooked

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Female Malaysian fishmonger has social media hooked

Female Malaysian fishmonger has social media hooked

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2022

She’s a mass communications graduate but helps her father sell fish at a wet market – yet her education is not going to waste.

Oh Puey Ping, 28, is making waves on social media with her insightful videos and snippets of her daily life. And she has got her followers hooked.

Her videos have garnered more than 200,000 views with over 100,000 followers, even reaching a million for her fun cooking videos.

Oh, who is known as “PP” or “Maiyumeipp” (fishmonger girl), starts her day as early as 5.30am when she leaves her house to set up a stall with her father at the Taman Sahabat market in George Town’s Teluk KumbarPenang state.

In the afternoons, though, she becomes a different kettle of fish. She turns content creator.

Her love for making videos began at a young age.

“I used to document holidays and trips that we took as a family as keepsakes. This progressed into random content and during pre-pandemic times, I decided to make some videos and post them on social media.

“During the movement-control order, my cousin helped me make more content and I started uploading them more often.

Female Malaysian fishmonger has social media hooked

“It did not matter if people saw the video; I just enjoyed making content, which included featuring kampung [community] recipes.

“Then I noticed the viewership increase. My cousin helps me film while I do the editing before uploading the videos,” she said at her home in Teluk Kumbar.

Oh said she wants people to know that despite being a fishmonger she is like any other girl who likes dressing up, fashion, working out and exploring new places.

“Sometimes people think that we are working in a wet market and therefore don’t enjoy the finer things in life.

“This is why I make videos which show me cutting fish and then I transition into something fancier like wearing a gown,” she added.

Oh said she makes videos to teach people recipes as well.

“Some have reached out to me to thank me as these are recipes they remember as children but never learnt to make, such as local kampung dishes such as acar ikan [pickled fish].

“I never thought it would make people happy,” she went on to say.

“If I have time, I would like to visit other countries near the ocean and try their seafood to see if it is different.

“I would also like to visit different places in Malaysia to make content on local food and different cuisines,” she said.

Oh, who was just two years old when her parents started selling fish in 1996, said she and her siblings were also taught how to scale and gut a fish.

The Star

Asia News Network

The latest news on what’s happening in the region

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The latest news on what's happening in the region

The latest news on what’s happening in the region

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2022

Check out what’s hot in the region on November 3, as The Nation puts together headlines from members of Asia News Network (ANN). Click to read more:

Jobs Philippines
Gov’t rushes to avert EU ban on PH seafarers | Inquirer 

N Korea 
North Korea fires three missiles toward East Sea – Korea Herald    

South China Sea
New photos of China-made islands in Spratlys show scale of military buildup | Inquirer

Taiwan
Any US-China war over Taiwan would be about maritime control over Asia: Wang Gungwu – Straits Times

Media Philippines
PH still among world’s worst countries in prosecuting killers of journalists | Inquirer                                                               

Defense Japan-Korea 
Editorial: Japan, U.S., South Korea must work together to boost deterrence – The Japan News                                               

Climate 
Opinion: Forget COP27, the youth should hold an ‘Accountability COP’ | The Daily Star
 

Economy Pakistan
In meeting with PM Shehbaz, China’s Xi says will support Pakistan in stabilising its financial situation – Dawn                                

Economy China
More policy support set for real economy – China Daily         

Economy Vietnam
HCM City economic growth forecasts to 9.4 per cent for 2022 – Vietnam News                                                                          

Trade India- Russia
Growing trade between Russia and India opens a new era for Silk Road – The Statesman                                                                   

Tourism Cambodia
S Reap preps for busy holiday | Phnom Penh Post
 

Aviation India 
AirAsia sells remaining stake in AirAsia India to Air India / The Star

As air travel gathers pace, Japan to smooth foreign pilots’ path to flight licences

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As air travel gathers pace, Japan to smooth foreign pilots’ path to flight licences

As air travel gathers pace, Japan to smooth foreign pilots’ path to flight licences

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2022

In a bid to secure foreign pilots who can start work immediately amid increasing demand for flights, Japan plans to ease requirements for obtaining a flight licence in the country, the Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

The Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry will exempt foreign pilots with sufficient experience from taking a flight test when they switch a licence issued in their country to a different type valid in Japan. Instead, only a flight simulator test will be necessary.

As of January, there were 231 foreign pilots working for major Japanese airlines, less than half the 517 in the same month two years ago due to flight cutbacks and cancellations amid the pandemic.

However, flight demand is recovering as the economy returns to normal.

Several years are needed to train copilots and about 10 years to train captains, making it difficult to increase the number of pilots in a short period of time. The ministry is trying to make it easier to utilise foreign personnel who are ready to fly airplanes in Japan.

Aircraft licences are generally divided into two types — one for jets and another for propeller planes. When converting a foreign licence to a Japanese licence, a flight test is not required as long as both licences are for the same type of aircraft. Just a flight simulator test is required in that case.

A flight test is currently required to attain a Japanese licence to fly a different type of aircraft.

As air travel gathers pace, Japan to smooth foreign pilots’ path to flight licences

The ministry will revise relevant memorandum based on the Civil Aeronautics Law by the end of this month at the earliest, allowing foreign pilots with at least 2,000 flight hours to take a simulator test to switch their licence to fly a different type of aircraft.

This will make it easier to convert foreign licences for jets to Japanese licences for propeller aircraft. It is also expected to help secure work-ready foreign pilots on regional routes and remote islands, among other areas, where only propeller-driven aircraft fly.

The easing of requirements will apply to foreign licences issued by member countries of the International Civil Aviation Organization. Only high-performance flight simulators approved by the Japanese government will be used for tests.

“We’ll ensure a quality level equal to that of flight tests,” a transport ministry official said.

For airlines, this measure is likely to reduce the burden of aircraft maintenance and coordination among airports associated with flight tests. Since there are no fuel costs involved, the ministry expects to be able to reduce hiring costs by several hundred thousand yen per employee.

In July last year, the ministry began accepting online applications to convert foreign licences to Japanese licences. The ministry also plans to review the physical and other checks currently required for pilots aged 60 or older, including Japanese pilots.

Discussions on creating an environment in which elderly pilots can continue to work will begin this fiscal year.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

Asia News Network