Pakistan's plan to shift from gas to electricity

Morning! Tomorrow is the International Day of Human Space Flight, and to celebrate, let's talk about NASA's latest project. The space agency is sending four astronauts to venture around the Moon on Artemis II. This will be NASA's first crewed mission to establish a long-term presence on the Moon, and it's all in preparation for future missions to Mars.

In this week’s edition:

💲 Credit crunch and home-buying

⚡ Pak’s plans to shift from gas to electricity

⚔️ Twitter Vs Substack

👎🏼 Lack of fans of Pakistan’s Draft Data Protection Bill

- The Itla Squad 💼

Business

Global 🌎️

Why buying a home just got harder for the average US citizen

The head of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, warned of a possible credit crunch in March, but it seems that Americans are already feeling the squeeze, with more households reporting a deterioration in their access to credit, according to a survey by the New York Federal Reserve.

What’s a credit crunch? Credit crunch means … experiencing a crunch in accessing credit? A 2014 paper on the Federal Reserve's website describes a credit crunch as a sharp decrease in people's and businesses' ability to access bank credit. Banks worry about two things during a credit crunch. First, they are concerned about whether borrowers can repay their loans with higher interest rates. Second, they worry about their ability to maintain enough cash reserves to meet the demand of depositors who may withdraw their money. This can make it difficult for potential borrowers to get loans, leading to a credit crunch. Experts warn that many lenders are already tightening their lending requirements, and this trend may continue in the future.

What does it mean for you? When credit conditions get tighter, it's harder for people to borrow money and loans become more expensive. This makes it tough for households to buy cars, homes, and for businesses to grow and hire. All of this can lead to a recession. So, tighter credit conditions can be a real problem for everyone and the economy as a whole.

TLDR: A credit crunch is hitting Americans hard as more households report trouble accessing credit. Banks worry about borrowers being able to repay loans with higher interest rates and maintaining enough cash reserves, making it harder for potential borrowers to get loans, and leading to a recession.

What else is new in news

✶ In March, the unemployment rate for Black workers in US hit a record low, dropping from 5.7% to 5%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Local 🇵🇰

Billion rupee projects & Pakistan: Mostly a tragic love story

Pakistan might be on the edge of default but it doesn’t hurt to plan for the future. The government plans to move away from using gas and switch to electricity over the next 10 years as part of a Rs45 billion project to reduce the country's dependence on gas imports and to shift towards cleaner energy sources.

More: The project was cleared by the Central Development Working Party and plans to create building templates to share with housing authorities, government departments, and businesses. These templates will help them construct energy-efficient buildings based on new "green building codes" while improving energy efficiency through better building design and codes. The project aims to consider both thermal insulation and efficient heating/cooling services to ensure a coordinated approach to energy efficiency.

What can this project mean for you? It aims to start a program where households and businesses can trade in their old and inefficient gas geysers, boilers, and space heaters for newer and more efficient electric alternatives that use heat pump technology. The initiative will also encourage industries to use electricity instead of gas by providing a loan fund that offers credit lines to households and businesses.

TLDR: Pakistan plans to promote cleaner energy sources by shifting towards electricity, encouraging energy-efficient buildings and electric alternatives for households and businesses. The project includes a loan fund for credit lines and aims to reduce the country's dependence on gas imports.

News Flash

✶According to a report from a US think tank, Pakistan is at risk of defaulting on its debt, which could result in a series of disruptive consequences.

Tech

Global 🌎️

Elon Musk being petty? How unsurprising

If we took away the headline, it would be hard to tell if it is a petty high-school beef or a heated feud between two tech CEOs.

What went down: It all started after Substack, the popular subscription newsletter platform for writers, launched a new feature called Notes, which is similar to Twitter. In response, Musk's Twitter did the pettiest thing ever: blocking users from liking or retweeting any posts mentioning "Substack" and even preventing the word from being searched on the platform. Substack CEO Chris Best expressed frustration with the actions taken by Twitter and disputed Musk's claim that they were trying to download Twitter's database to support their new feature, Substack Notes.

Looking ahead: On Saturday night, Substack's verified Twitter account stated that it appeared the censorship of their content had ended. However, searching for Substack on Twitter still leads to redirection - hinting that a one-sided conflict is still ongoing.

TLDR: Substack and Elon Musk's Twitter are in a feud over Substack's new feature called "Notes." Musk's Twitter blocked engagement with any posts containing "Substack" and prevented the term from being searched. The conflict seems to be ongoing despite Substack's claim that the censorship has ended.

What else is new in news

✶It seems like the West is ganging up on Tik Tok as the Australian government has decided to ban the use of TikTok on its government-issued devices citing concerns over security.

Local 🇵🇰

No protection in Pak’s Draft Data Protection Bill?

AIC (Asia Internet Coalition), comprising global digital media giants, seems to be seeing a lot of issues with the “Pakistan Draft Data Protection Bill 2023”.

What issues? The industry is concerned that the Draft Bill on data protection doesn't address many important issues, such as strict limits on cross-border data flows, unclear definitions of sensitive and critical personal data, and different data subject rights. These provisions don't meet global data protection standards like GDPR and could harm Pakistani businesses and consumers. The Bill may also make it harder for foreign internet companies to operate in Pakistan, which could hurt the country's economy and deter foreign investment. Local companies may face higher costs to operate and maintain servers.

What’s the fix? AIC proposed a meeting with the industry to discuss the bill in detail. They're also calling for the removal of some parts of the Bill, like the requirement to store personal data in Pakistan and the prohibition on transferring some types of personal data out of the country.

TLDR: AIC, a group of global digital media giants, raised concerns over the Pakistan Draft Data Protection Bill 2023. The industry is worried that the bill doesn't meet global data protection standards and could harm Pakistani businesses and consumers. The AIC proposed a meeting with the industry and called for the removal of some parts of the Bill.

Tech tour of news

✶ Bazaar, the top business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce platform in Pakistan with over 5 million businesses, has launched Bazaar Prime, a specialized market distribution branch for retail suppliers and manufacturers.

More interesting Itla (اطلاع) we consumed:

🧘🏻‍♂️ If you have anxiety or know someone who has, this video by Dr. K was more informative and helpful than all of the books, podcasts, and lectures we ever consumed. Give it a watch.