FIFA U-17 World Cup: India’s World Cup adventure ends in brutal 4-0 defeat to Ghana

The physical and emotional stress of playing against three top class teams in a space of two weeks was starting to show. As the Ghanaians celebrated, the Indian players were looking at each other for answers or crouching dejectedly.

India’s last group match turned out to be their biggest defeat in the FIFA U-17 World Cup. Ghana captain Eric Ayiah scored in the 43rd and 52nd minute before second half substitutes Richard Danso and Emmanuel Toku scored in the 86th and 87th minute respectively. The home side hence ended its sojourn in the U-17 World Cup bottom of their group table with one goal to their name.

The match can be best described as a story of two halves. In the first, India were making Ghana toe a line. The home side started the game aggresively, earning a corner within the first 10 seconds. It was taken short and the ball was driven into the box from a tight angle, the Ghanaian keeper collected it easily. The physical superiority of the African side started showing only towards the end of the first 10 minutes.

The first instance of this was a piercing run made through the middle by Sadiq Ibrahim. He found himself one on one with Dheeraj Moirangthem and passed it to Eric Ayiah who only had to turn it into the practically unguarded post. India were saved only by the linesman flagging Ayiah offside but that was a warning. Sanjeev Stalin and Anwar Ali were no match for Ibrahim’s pace.

In a bid to avoid Boris Singh, Ghana started concentrating their attacks down the right flank. As it turned out, Ibrahim was able to leave Suresh Wangjam biting the dust. He and Ayiah started creating many precarious situations for India. But every time, the home side would launch the ball forward, Boris being the player at the end of those hopeful passes most of the time.

That was the narrative for the first half, save for its last three minutes. Ghana were winning the second balls, their counter attacks were quick and created clear chances more often than not. But India never shied away from a chance to attack. The diminutive Boris Singh would cut and skip past the Ghanians and India would end up creating three chances for themselves. None of these produced a shot on target, a marked difference to what India got in the match against Colombia. In the end, though, it was the superior pace of Sadiq Ibrahim that cost India a chance to go into half time with a clean sheet. He darted down the right flank and found enough space to turn in a low pass. Dheeraj, who had needed some attention to his right leg just a couple of minutes earlier, dived to get a palm to the ball but he only ended up putting right in the path of the oncoming Ayiah. Ghana were 1-0 up and the half time whistle approached soon.

Ghana started the second half all guns blazing. Ibrahim and Ayiah stretched and ravaged the Indian defence and the Africans doubled their lead in the 52nd minute. The physical and emotional stress of playing against three top class teams in a space of two weeks was starting to show. As the Ghanaians celebrated, the Indian players were looking at each other for answers or crouching dejectedly. It was not a new situation for them. India were 2-0 down at one point against the United States. But India were not bossed around in any of their previous matches the way they had been here. They fended off consecutive waves of Ghanaian attacks after that and finally caved in the last 10 minutes of the match. Richard Danso and substitute Emamanuel Toku scored in the 86th and 87th minute and India were down and out. The final whistle came and with that ended India’s adventure in the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Tata Teleservices clutches 'free' Airtel lifeline

Country's largest telecom service provider Bharti Airtel will acquire consumer mobile business (CMB) of the Tata Group on a 'debt-free cash-free' basis.

The deal will allow Airtel to acquire 40 million subscribers of Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL) and Tata Maharashtra Ltd (TTML) across 19 circles, which represent bulk of country's population and customer base, according to a statement released by both the companies.

The deal will save the Tatas from the prospect of having to shut down the struggling unit.

It will enable Airtel to bolster its strong spectrum holdings with the addition of 178.5 MHz spectrum (of which 71.3 MHz is liberalised) in the 850, 1800 & 2100 MHz bands, which all are used for offering 4G services.

While all the debt will remain with the Tatas, Airtel will assume payment of Rs 1,500-2,000 crore, or close to 20% of the Rs 9,000-10,000 crore deferred payments of Tata's unpaid spectrum liabilities to the government. Tatas will pay the rest.

As of end-March, Tata Teleservices and its unit had combined debt of Rs 34,000 crore excluding spectrum liabilities.

All past liabilities and dues will be settled by Tata.

This is the second such big deal in the Indian telecom sector after Vodafone India and Idea Cellular in March this year announced plans to merge their business.

Bharti Airtel-Tata's CMB combined entity will have a market share, in terms of subscribers, to 27-28%, against round 35% of the Vodafone -Idea combined entity. Bharti Airtel has a mobile subscriber base of over 300 million.

Tata Teleservices had a debt of Rs 40,000 crore and the group had been looking to sell off its loss-making mobile business. It has about 5,000 employees.

Airtel will ensure quality services to Tata CMB's customers, while offering them the added benefits of its innovative product portfolio, access to superior voice & data services, mobile banking, VAS and domestic/ international roaming facilities. Tata CMB's operations and services will continue as normal until the completion of the transaction.

The deal is subject to regulatory approvals.

"This is a significant development towards further consolidation in the Indian mobile industry... The acquisition of additional spectrum made an attractive business proposition," Bharti Airtel Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal said.

The transaction will create substantial long-term value for shareholders given the significant synergies, he said.

Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran said the agreement is the "best and most optimal solution" for the Tata Group and its stakeholders. "We have evaluated multiple options and are pleased to have this agreement with Bharti," he said.

Tata and Bharti Airtel will work together to further explore other mutual areas of cooperation, that will be value accretive for both the groups. The employees of Tata will be demerged on the lines of the two businesses ie CMB and EFL (Enterprise and Fixed Line and Broadband), and post an optimal manpower planning will be moved accordingly.

Tata is also in initial stages of exploring combination of its enterprise business with Tata Communications and its Retail Fixed Line and Broadband business with Tata Sky.

Any such transaction will be subject to respective boards and other requisite approvals.

Tata will also retain its stake in Viom, and will take care of the liabilities associated with it. The Boards of Bharti Airtel, Tata Sons, TTSL and TTML have approved the transaction. Goldman Sachs (India) Securities Private Limited is financial adviser to Tata, the statement said.

Bharti Airtel is also in the process of acquiring India operations of Norway's Telenor.

In February, Tata agreed to pay NTT DoCoMo $1.18 billion to buy out the Japanese firm's stake in the telecoms joint venture, settling a long-standing dispute.

WILL RAIN DANCE RUIN T20 BASH?

Hyderabad: The big question ahead of the deciding T20 International against Australia here on Friday is whether the rain gods will be kind enough to finally relent and allow some cricket. It has been raining incessantly here for the past week. The heavens have opened up like never before in the recent past, making life difficult not only for the citizens but also for t he groundstaff, who have had to battle hard to protect the outfield from damage.

It has been a tough task for curator YL Chandrasekhar but he and his team have done a good job in ensuring minimal damage. The pitch is as good as ever but there are a couple of wet spots in the outfield towards the east end of the ground.

“There will not be much change in the character of the wicket and it will stay true for the entire period. There are two wet patches and we are working on them. We have used a couple of fans to speed up the drying process but it all depends on the weather. We have our fingers crossed. If it doesn’t rain tonight and tomorrow, we will have a full game,” Chandrasekhar told ToI on the eve of the game.

To the delight of the staff and players, the sun was out in all its brilliance on Thursday. It turned out to be a hot day but some dark clouds gathered on the horizon again by evening. The Met department has predicted rain for the next few days and that is not music to the ears of the 30,000-odd fans who hope to see their stars in action.

The Indians were ambushed by left-arm speedster Jason Behrendorff in the previous game. The top-order swung and danced to the tune of the Australian bowler, who used the conditions well to bring his side back into the series. With the sides locked 1-1, there is everything to play for in the decider. Skipper Virat Kohli and his band will be keen to prove that the Guwahati show was just an aberration. Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Kohli will love to give it back to the Australian bowlers, especially Behrendorff.

The Indian bowlers have done well in the series and it remains to be seen if the team management gives left-armer Ashish Nehra, who has announced his retirement from the game after the T20I on November 1, a chance in this game.

The visitors, who were thrashed 1-4 in the preceding ODI series, have a golden chance to leave these shores with a series win. This Australian side may not be in the same class of previous ones but they still have quality players. Hyderabad has been ‘home’ to skipper David Warner and he knows the wicket and conditions here like the back of his hand. The aggressive opener has played a key role for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL in the last few seasons and will be eager to use all that knowledge for one last hurrah.

The Indians though will have something to say about it.

SMART MONEY ON BENNI

While some footballers would rather sit on the fence and never dare to predict the MTN8 final between Cape Town City and SuperSport United, some have no problems picking the winner, and most of those we spoke to are going with the Citizens.

Lebogang Manyama: former Cape Town City and SuperSport United forward

“Benni [McCarthy] or [Eric] Tinkler? Whoever wins, I will be happy for him. It’s the same as the players ...

“I have close friends in both teams and pity they all can’t win. May the best team win.”

Mark Mayambela: Chippa United

“City will win. One of my favourite players is Thabo [Nodada], they are captained by my former colleague (Robyn Johannes) and I have a lot of friends there.

“Ayanda Patosi is from my hood (Khayelitsha). Besides that, I’m confident City can win because of the type of players they have – players like Patosi, [Lehlohonolo] Majoro and Teko Modise have played high-level football. Benni was also coached by one of the best coaches in Jose Mourinho and I’m sure he has learnt a lot from him. Of course, SuperSport have great players, but I still back City.”

Gift Motupa: Baroka

“As much as I would like my former coach Eric Tinkler to win it, I am giving it to Cape Town City. Majoro and Patosi will play a big role.

“I think Benni needs it more than SuperSport and they [City] are on form.”

Tapelo Nyongo: AmaZulu

“I give it to City, but they will win in penalties. “I trust their hunger will motivate them. “SuperSport might suffer from complacency as they have already won the Nedbank Cup.”

Thabiso Semenya: Polokwane City

“I’m going with SuperSport United because my friend Thuso Phala is there. I want him to have the champions’ medal.”

Prince Nxumalo: Ajax Cape Town

“I am vouching for SuperSport. “They have been in the finals more than City, which gives them an advantage. They will win it in extra-time.”

Harvey Weinstein and the Silence of the Men

I went to Hollywood when I was 23. I had made a low-budget film, won an award at a prestigious festival, scored an agent and made a TV deal all within six months. It was a fairy tale most people will never experience, and I knew, as well as a 23-year-old can know anything, that I was getting a pretty great deal. I bounced from meeting to meeting with the joy of Cinderella at the ball.

These meetings, almost always with men, were rife with acts of everyday sexism – the presumption that I must want to make small “intimate” movies, a suggestion that I write a comedy focused on “the way women’s periods sync up and they go crazy for a week”, the insistence that I’d be “really funny paired with a hot girl”.

There were dinners that went on too long, work lunches that turned into confessions about the broken state of the film executive’s marriage and the consistent insistence that I must, as my work suggests, be “up for anything in bed”.

I took it in stride, unloading the day’s injustices on the couch of my new friend (and now my work partner), Jenni Konner. She told me maddening stories of her own ascent and we plotted a new world for ourselves. We imagined a set run by women, men who wouldn’t dream of overstepping or underpaying, a company where girls stretched as far as the eye could see, the chance to write scripts that changed people’s perceptions of feminine identity.

We would tell any man who thought that was an invitation for sex to go eat a shoe. The men we have worked with – like Judd Apatow, Hollywood’s least sleazy guy – have showed us utter respect. The only terrifying producer rage I ever experienced was from a gay man who tried to take back a purse he had bought me. We got to do all that we had dreamed of and more.

This past week, reports that Harvey Weinstein had sexually harassed women for years came to light, making it crystal clear that not every woman in Hollywood has had the chance to walk our path.

Abuse, threats and coercion have been the norm for so many women trying to do business or make art. Weinstein may be the most powerful man in Hollywood to be revealed as a predator, but he’s certainly not the only one who has been allowed to run wild. His behaviour, silently co-signed for decades by employees and collaborators, is a microcosm of what has been happening in Hollywood since always and of what workplace harassment looks like for women everywhere.

The use of power to possess and silence women is as likely to occur in a fast-food restaurant as it is on a movie set, and Hollywood has yet another chance to make a noisy statement about what we should and should not condone as a society. A liberal-leaning industry, we have been quick to condemn Bill O’Reilly, Roger Ailes and, yes, the President. We do not accept sexual abuse as “locker room talk”.

So why the deafening silence, particularly from the industry’s men, when one of our own is outed as having a nasty taste for humiliating and traumatising women?

This isn’t anything new. Woody Allen, whose daughter has said, over his denials, that he sexually abused her as a child, is still getting the hottest young stars to work with him. Roman Polanski, whose victims continue to come forward, is considered a visionary worth fighting for, and I recently had a male star tell me that working with him would “obviously be the ultimate”. (In fact, Weinstein himself gathered Hollywood to sign a letter asking that Polanksi’s charges be dropped and he be allowed to return to America.)

Beyond these bold-name cases, ignoring bad behaviour remains the signature move of men in Hollywood. I hear stories from victims themselves at a rate that feels positively dystopian.

Last year, I was sexually harassed by a director of a show, not my own, and not on a set, and the response by the powers that be was to defend him, question the women ferociously and take ages before letting him go from the network. It was a move based less on his skill than on some ancient loyalty. It’s that kind of behaviour that normalises this abuse of power.

The accusations against Weinstein, so clearly outlined and so completely horrifying, seemed impossible to dispute or ignore. I naively expected that the reticence that Hollywood’s powerful men have shown, the collective refusal to take sides in he-said she-said narratives, would be crushed in the face of this open secret being revealed definitively.

The reason I am zeroing in on the men is that they have the least to lose and the most power to shift the narrative, and are probably not dealing with the same level of collective and personal trauma around these allegations. But here we are, days later, waiting for Weinstein’s most powerful collaborators to say something. Anything.

It wouldn’t be just a gift to the women he has victimised, but a message to the women who are watching our industry closely. They need a signal that we do not approve of the abuse of power and hatred of women that is the driving force behind this kind of behaviour.

In the fall of 2016, I performed at a benefit for Mrs Hillary Clinton organised by the Weinstein Company. I had heard the rumours. I felt that going onstage under his aegis was a betrayal of my own values. But I wanted so desperately to support my candidate that I made a calculation. We’ve all made calculations, and saying we’re sorry about those calculations is not an act of cowardice.

It’s an essential change of position that could shift the way we do business and the way women regard their own position in the workplace. I’m sorry I shook the hand of someone I knew was not a friend to women in my industry.

Men of Hollywood, what are you sorry for? What will you refuse to accept anymore? What will you say to fill the void and change the standard? Are you afraid because you heard the whisperings but accepted a role or a position on a host committee or a glass of champagne and a pat on the back? Are you embarrassed because you’re in a photo with him smiling broadly or because he gave money to your organisation or introduced you to your girlfriend or earned you your Oscar nomination? Are you operating under the assumption that this is very sad but that it is not your problem?

It is, unfortunately, all of our problems. It is the problem of the agents who sent their clients to meet a man they knew was a predator, who shuffled them onto his sets. It is the problem of producers who turned a blind eye. It is the problem of actors who heard whispers but walked back to their trailers to play fantasy football. It is the problem of industry media that would not report their findings because they feared losing their place in Weinstein’s good graces. It is not, as some have suggested, the problem of the women who are afraid to come forward with their own stories or who settled financially with Weinstein.

Hollywood’s silence, particularly that of men who worked closely with Weinstein, only reinforces the culture that keeps women from speaking. When we stay silent, we gag the victims. When we stay silent, we condone behaviour that none of us could possibly believe is OK. (unless you do).

When we stay silent, we stay on the same path that led us here. Making noise is making change. Making change is why we tell stories. We don’t want to have to tell stories like this one again and again. Speak louder.

Planning for Budget 2018

WILL Budget 2018 address the economic concerns raised by the World Bank (WB)?

The WB is normally cautious, polite and diplomatic in its reports on national economies and one has to read between the lines to get the messages it wants to convey to governments and their people.

In its “East Asia and Pacific Economic Update of Oct 3, 2017”, the WB presented a summary titled “Balancing Act”. So what are the WB’s main messages to Malaysia?

1. The Malaysian economy has done well, with a growth of 5.2% this year, and a slower growth of 5% and 4.8% in 2019! Hence, Malaysia is weakening, unless the budget does more to strengthen it.

The slowdown is due to risks posed on our open economy as we are vulnerable to external demand. This means our exports could decline and imports could rise, narrowing our balance of payments’ current account surplus. Our exchange rate could then decline further and our cost of living could rise. But the WB characteristically does not specify the details.

2. The WB notes that private consumption (what the rakyat spend on food, transport, shelter, etc.) is large and has “expanded firmly”. It is estimated at 6.6% in 2017 and 6.5% in 2018. However, total investment is expected to increase at a slower pace of 6.1% this year and only 3.2% next year.

We have to remember that higher consumption can lead to less productive expenditure. And lower capital investment can lead to less infrastructure and lower capacity to generate production and income in future.

What can or will the budget do about this structural problem? Again, the WB has identified the problem but not the solution.

3. Inflation rose to 4.1% in the first half of 2017. This is high and is likely to rise further with the relatively weak ringgit. At the same time, prices of food rose by a high of 4.2% for the 12-month period ending July 2017. This is causing much hardship especially among low-income earners. Will Budget 2018 adopt the necessary measures to reduce food prices?

My proposal is to liberalise the rules and regulations and reduce any protectionist policies and the wide-scale corruption and expenditure wastage that both suppress and restrict the supply of basic goods and services. If this liberalisation is not done soon, the rakyat will suffer even more from rising prices.

4. House prices have risen faster than our income growth, according to the WB. This makes housing more unaffordable to the lower income groups. The WB rightly points out that higher house prices raise the cost of living but it does not suggest any solution to the problem.

I would say the solution is for the Government to build and also provide more incentives to the private sector to expand the sup- ply of affordable houses more rapidly. However, the mass production of more affordable houses through the purposeful adoption of the Industrial Building System (IBS) has not moved faster. The IBS should now be implemented with a stronger political will. And if there are powerful vested interests against the use of IBS, they should be strongly opposed by the Government.

I hope the budget will provide the necessary push for the IBS.

5. The WB clearly states that “the Malaysian economy continues to face uncertainties mainly from the external environment” but it has completely ignored the more serious threats from within our country which we can control. These are extremism, racialism and religious bigotry. Indeed, they are debilitating negative forces that can undermine national and international confidence in our country. And yet the WB politely keeps silent although it is aware from global experience that domestic and foreign investment can be adversely affected by these negative internal forces, which are also push factors for the rising brain drain.

Will Budget 2018 deal with these structural problems or sweep them nicely under the carpet?

6. The WB surprisingly and glibly proposes reducing exemptions on the Goods and Services Tax (GST)! Does it not realise that the low income groups are already experiencing considerable pain from rising prices? How could it also suggest “addressing the rise of civil servants’ salaries and pensions” to contain the budget operating expenditures? It could have proposed raising productivity in the civil service by promoting more competition, incentives and meritocracy instead.

Will Budget 2018 address these thorny issues or leave them to fester?

7. The WB does mention in passing the need to accelerate “structural reforms to improve both private sector productivity and public sector efficiency” to sustain our current growth momentum in the medium term. I agree entirely, but it does not say how.

By being overly polite, the WB is missing the whole purpose of its mission in Malaysia. It has to be more direct and pointed in its remarks, however brief they may be. This is essential so that the WB will not lose its high reputation. The WB has to better serve Malaysia and other developing countries.

More importantly, we hope that the coming Budget 2018 will address the soft state and the future of our economy amidst domestic and global uncertainty!

But we can face our challenges if we show stronger leadership and a collective national will to succeed further!

TOURISM

From the balcony of my villa at daybreak, I can see the nearby village creaking to life. Children are walking to school in their blue uniforms, and a farmer slings a hoe into the ground. The Africa of travelers’ imaginations is defined by vast open spaces — the treeless plains, the lonely desert — but Rwanda is the most densely populated country on the continent, and a trip here comes with an awareness that you’re sharing this space.

I sip my coffee in the morning breeze, and my eyes wander out to the mountain dominating the landscape. Mount Bisoke is one of several volcanoes in the Virunga chain, and every room at Bisate Lodge offers a front-row seat to its majesty. Although the peak spends much of the day hiding behind clouds, at this early hour, sunbeams shoot out from behind the crown like a kind of holy light, and I can understand why people from another era might have believed it was magical.

The Virungas are home to more than half the area’s 880 endangered mountain gorillas, the same primates Dian Fossey studied in the 1970s and 1980s. The chance to visit them in their natural rainforest habitat is a bucket-list item that draws visitors from across the globe to these peaks, which straddle the border with Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Gorilla treks can originate in each country, but Rwanda has emerged as the high-end experience. Wilderness Safaris, one of the top ecotourism companies in Africa, opened Bisate Lodge near Volcanoes National Park in June. Faith in the area is so strong that two more premium names, Singita and One & Only Resorts, are opening properties near the park in 2018 and 2019, making Rwanda a new seat of luxury tourism.

Luxury? Rwanda? The 1994 genocide here was one of the most bone-chilling tragedies in modern memory, leaving a million dead and an entire country shaken to its core. In the almost quarter-century since, however, something remarkable has happened. Rwanda has flourished. No more talk of Hutus and Tutsis, the tribal divisions exacerbated by Belgian colonialists, but a newfound unity. There’s mandatory education and universal health care.

The country even legislated gender equality and claims more women in Parliament than any government in the world. Much of this change can be attributed to Paul Kagame, the president who steered Rwanda through a long period of reconciliation to emerge as one of the safest places in Africa.

And so tourism is booming. Up 30 percent in the last two years alone and grossing US$400 million in 2016, the industry has pushed past coffee to become the country’s top foreign exchange earner. In the capital of Kigali, a futuristic new convention center is part of the government’s plan to frame the centrally located city as a major business hub. Marriott International Inc. and Radisson Blu have opened 200-plus-room hotels to accommodate the influx.

Once dismissed by guidebooks as “nothing much to see here,” Kigali has the vibrancy of a bustling 21st century Africa, where women in colorful kitenge dresses carry jugs on their head alongside zooming moto taxis and young people texting. With multiple carriers flying into Kigali International Airport and an easy $30 visa paid upon arrival (a $100 three-pack includes Uganda and Kenya), travel to and around this tiny landlocked country has become easier than ever. The hope is that tourists who come for the gorillas will stay and discover the rest.

The drive to Bisate Lodge is a threehour journey from Kigali along winding mountain passes that overlook an endless patchwork of crop plots: banana groves with leaves like flapping elephant ears; wheat fields rippling into the horizon; potatoes, potatoes, potatoes. Ninety percent of the country’s 12 million inhabitants are subsistence farmers, leaving little of the green and hilly landscape uncultivated.

I’ve arrived in July, during the dry season that runs from June to mid-September. The temperature stays moderate year-round, but Rwanda is a place of fog and shifting winds, and though it’s a sunny 75F (24 degrees Celcius) back in Kigali, the air gets chillier as the road climbs toward my destination. The final 15 minutes of the trip take me and my driver, Duncan, down a bumpy road through a mud-hut village, also called Bisate. Goats nibble on bushes and barefoot children stare at the black SUV as it passes, still struck by the novelty of a stranger coming to their part of the world.

Bisate Lodge was built within eyeshot of the town, and though the proximity turns out to be a profound part of my visit, I feel a stab of self-consciousness. Should I wave? Or try to remain invisible? We talk about travel as “getting away,” but just as crucially it’s an act of entering — a new place, a culture not our own. Those of us lucky enough to set foot on foreign soil would do well to consider the moral complexity of our arrival.

Fortunately, Wilderness Safaris has been doing that for more than three decades. Conceived in 1983 by Colin Bell and Chris McIntyre, two shaggy-haired guides seized by the need to preserve the area wildlife, the company evolved alongside a more sophisticated understanding of global travel. The point isn’t simply to take away but also to give back.

With more than 40 camps and lodges, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, Wilderness has earned a reputation for conserving land and also building up local communities. Five years ago, when the company began looking at this farmland around Volcanoes National Park, its team met with a co-op formed from the village and asked, “What do you want?” The answer from the communities was clear: They wanted jobs and opportunity.

Bisate has given them both. At the northwestern edge of the village, the lodge appears at the end of a short, solitary road, a cluster of chestnut-shaped villas nestled into an eroded volcanic cone. (The word bisate means “pieces” in Kinyarwanda). About 250 locals helped build the property, and 45 Rwandans were hired as permanent staff, almost half from the village.

Designed by the South Africa-based Nicholas Plewman Architects, Bisate draws inspiration from the dramatic dome and thatching of the King’s Palace at Nyanza, the 19th century seat of monarchy in Rwanda’s southern province.

Profits of central SOEs surge 18%

China’s State-owned enterprises under central government administration posted a record high net profit of 1.11 trillion yuan ($166.94 billion) from January to September, thanks to more supply-side reforms, reducing the asset-liability ratio requirement and adding curbs on capital outflow.

The nine-month profits represent a year-on-year growth of 18.4 percent, with double-digit growth each month. Among the 98 central SOEs monitored, profits of 56 grew by more than 10 percent and 31 surged by more than 20 percent, the country’s top regulator of State-owned enterprises said on Thursday.

Shen Ying, chief accountant of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, said central SOEs are fostering new growth engines by expanding their footprints in strategic new industries and high-tech sectors, such as digital and green economies, artificial intelligence and new energy vehicles.

The central SOEs have invested 1.7 trillion yuan into research and development so far this year, accounting for one-quarter of the country’s total.

The total revenue of central SOEs amounted to 19.1 trillion yuan in the first nine months of 2017, up 15.4 percent year-

on-year.

The government’s goal for central SOEs of cutting 5.95 million metric tons of iron and steel overcapacity has been achieved ahead of schedule, while 23.88 million metric tons of coal overcapacity has been cut.

“A total of 2,041 ‘zombie companies’ from 81 central SOEs have taken a turn for the better in their profits in the first half of this year. Their loss has been reduced by 88.5 billion yuan, compared with the same period of 2015,” Shen said.

“Zombie companies” are economically unviable busi- nesses, usually in industries with severe overcapacity, kept alive only with aid from the government and banks.

Shen said the government welcomes companies of all ownership types, as well as foreign companies, to participate in China’s SOEs mixedownership reforms.

The commission is working on the third batch of SOE mixed-ownership reform pilot projects.

Up to now, 19 central SOEs in two batches have undergone mixed-ownership reforms in areas of power generation, oil and gas, railway and telecommunications. The number of central SOEs also has been reduced from 102 in July to 98 this month.

“China is resorting to SOE mergers and acquisitions to create more global powerhouses with competitive edge and to further the supply-side structural reform,” said Yu Xubo, president of COFCO Corp, the country’s biggest agricultural products supplier by revenue.

The group plans to see 60 percent of its revenue contributed by overseas markets by 2020 and control up to 50 million metric tons of foreign grain resources to ensure China’s food security.

STRENGTH OF PARTNERSHIP

Next-generation electronic devices are receiving attention worldwide, and Earl Plummer says, he is happy that a decadelong collaboration with Chinese organizations has contributed to the sector’s growth in the country.

Plummer, a professor at the Louisiana State University, specializes in the study of quantum phenomenon, and his research in the development of advanced observation methods, such as that for tunneling spectroscopy, have enjoyed international recognition.

Quantum physics is a field that relates to the study of atoms and subatomic particles.

The 77-year-old scientist from the United States has published more than 400 writings on his research that are frequently quoted by other scholars.

He has been both a member of the US National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Plummer’s exchanges with Chinese scholars began early in his career. A considerable percentage of his PhD students and postdoctoral fellows in the US were Asians. Half of them have returned to Asia, primarily China, he says. This exchange created lifelong partnerships between him and Chinese scholars.

In 2000, he was invited through a former Chinese friend to be the chief scientific adviser for the then newly founded International Center for Quantum Structures at the Institute of Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Since then, he and other distinguished international researchers have also been invited to come to China once a year to advise and collaborate with the institute.

Thanks to his active coordination and support, ICQS also brought together a good number of top young Chinese scientists, many of whom have now become leading figures in the academic community, laying a solid foundation for advancing the country’s research capabilities in such fields.

ICQS became such a success that it was later used as a model by some top Chinese universities and the collaborations have also been expanded to include other universities in the US, too.

“I have never seen in my career a program that was so successful as this,” Plummer says.

According to him, the cooperation has benefitted both sides on the long run, especially young scientists from both countries.

“In the beginning, the benefit was primarily for the Chinese, but as time went by we (US collaborators) truly benefited,” he adds.

His connection with and fostering of scientific leaders in China has assured a constant stream of talented scholars working in his US laboratory.

He has also had the chance to win sufficient funds for his research programs in China and has been able to build or use world-class equipment that are not available in the US.

“It (the collaboration) has really grown, and the interaction gets stronger every year,” says Plummer.

He has made great efforts in bringing practical sciencerelated experiences and traditions from the West to China, but also urged Chinese institutes, including the Institute of Physics, to create their own methods to develop science, according to Guo Jiandong, a professor at the institute and a former student of Plummer.

“He is a leading figure in the field of condensed matter physics internationally. His advice and support have been very helpful not only for me personally but also for the enhancement of science as a whole in China,” says Guo.

In recent years, Plummer has made annual visits to China, staying about a month each time, collaborating with Chinese scientists, giving lectures and workshops and participating in the cultivation of talent.

He has made efforts to help the Chinese Academy of Sciences build a talent pool of professionals with an international vision.

He has also expanded the cooperation to more Chinese organizations.

For example, he has served as a foreign adviser at the High Magnetic Field Laboratory under the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science in East China’s Anhui province.

“I intend to make it (collaboration with China) grow in the future,” says Plummer.

He says he has observed China’s progress in science and is glad that the Chinese Academy of Sciences is placing emphasis on fostering creativity among Chinese students in various institutes.

Plummer believes that the future of science in China lies with young people, and suggests that the “government should identify the really talented people, and give them the resources to shine”.

Over the years, he has been making efforts to deepen the collaboration between Chinese institutions and his US university both in research and talent nurturing.

He has guided an international team with members mainly from the Institute of Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the team has published nearly 30 papers in international journals, including Science. The program has helped nurture many young scholars.

His university in the US has established a dual-degree program, which allows Chinese students from two partner institutes in China to study in the US and vice versa. The program will expand to five or six Chinese universities in the next couple of years, Plummer says.

In September, he was given the Friendship Award by the Chinese government. The award is the highest honor given to foreigners who have made important contribution to China’s social and economic development. Plummer also won the 2016 CAS Award for International Scientific Cooperation.

The government should identify the really talented people, and give them the resources to shine.” Earl Plummer, US physicist

Party fulfills promises to the people

When looking back over the past five years, changes in all aspects of Chinese society have occurred in such a gradual, steady manner that sometimes they may not be so conspicuous.

But the upcoming 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which starts on Wednesday, offers a chance to review what the nation has achieved under the leadership of the Party and General Secretary Xi Jinping.

At the congress, Xi, also president of China, is expected to deliver a report on the committee’s work in the past five years and to present the future direction of the Party and country.

“Our people have an ardent love for life. They desire better education, stable jobs, higher income, reliable social security, trustworthy healthcare, improved housing conditions and a nicer environment. They want their children to be healthy, to have good jobs and to lead better lives. The Party will strive to meet their wishes,” Xi promised on Nov 15, 2012, when he was elected top Party leader.

The Party and Xi himself have honored these pledges by maintaining China on a correct and rapid development track.

“We have resolved a great number of tough problems the Party had wished to resolve but had been unable to do so. We have realized many grand projects the Party had aspired to undertake but had seen no completion,” the general secretary said at a key Party meeting on July 26.

The achievements have been hard won. The Party and its members, numbering more than 89 million, constantly work to make sure the people have a better life and China sees a great rejuvenation.

Happier and healthier

Groups of people exercising outdoors at night continue to swell in Chinese cities. This is, to a great extent, because the air is cleaner. In 2016, average concentrations of PM2.5 — tiny, harmful particulate matter — fell by at least 30 percent in major cities compared with 2013, the Ministry of Environmental Protection said.

Water quality in lakes and rivers and soil conditions are improving, with grasslands and forests continuing to expand.

People also have seen progress in other facets of life. Incomes keep rising and more jobs are being created; food safety is no longer a concern to many people; education is getting more support and is more accessible to every child regardless of background; almost all of the public are

covered by social security, and they find it easier to get medical service at a lower cost; new housing is more affordable for low-income families.

A symbol of China’s public infrastructure, railway networks — especially highspeed lines — have been extended rapidly. The country has more than 22,000 kilometers of high-speed lines, accounting for 60 percent of the world’s total highspeed railways.

The progress flows from comprehensive reforms the Party has been implementing under Xi’s instructions in the political, social, economic, cultural and military spheres.

One of the most remarkable advances is taking place in rural areas. Nearly 70 million people in underdeveloped regions, mostly in the northwest and southwest, have been lifted out of poverty.

Poverty alleviation is a top priority on the Party’s agenda. Xi has visited all of the 14 regions with high concentrations of the poor since he was sworn in five years ago, and the Party’s central leadership has made a solemn pledge to eliminate poverty in China by the end of 2020.

To make sure that reforms stay on track and goals are achieved, the Party and Xi also are striving to get rid of two outstanding hindrances — corruption and bureaucracy.

In the past five years, over 280 officials directly under the management of the CPC Central Committee’s organization department, most at or above ministerial level, were deprived of their titles, given internal punishment or sent to prison for graft or other misconduct. They included former senior leaders Zhou Yongkang and Ling Jihua as well as former military commanders Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou.

Stronger and mightier

Xi puts great importance on innovation in science and technology, emphasizing that it determines the further growth of the economy and even the future of the nation.

In the past five years, the country launched two manned space missions, with the most recent lasting over a month. Astronauts conducted dozens of scientific experiments inside the space laboratories. Scientists sent an exploratory rover to the moon and are preparing for a mission that will bring lunar samples back to Earth. They are also planning robotic explorations of Mars and Jupiter.

In the field of supercomputing, China’s Sunway TaihuLight is the world’s fastest system, capable of performing 93 quadrillion calculations per second.

The nation’s aircraft designers have built the C919, a large, advanced jetliner that represents their aspiration to compete with Boeing and Airbus in the most sophisticated industrial field, airliner production.

In the military sphere, the People’s Liberation Army is undergoing the biggest and deepest overhaul in decades.

Xi, who is also chairman of the Central Military Commission, is personally directing the far-reaching reform, which aims to make the PLA stronger, more integrated and more flexible so it will always be able to win modern wars.

The senior governing bodies of the world’s largest military have been reshuffled — including the Central Military Commission — to optimize the command chain. Regional command systems were reorganized to boost joint combat ability. Group armies and institutions were merged to improve efficiency, and new high-technology units were set up to prepare for nontraditional fields such as cyberspace. Soldiers now spend more time in combat training and live-fire exercises.

The PLA, benefiting from strengthened efforts in research and development, has added some of the world’s top weaponry, including the J-20 stealth fighter jet and DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile.

Farsighted, sober-minded

While Xi has praised the Party’s advances, he also is fully aware of obstacles and challenges. The president often tells officials to remain sober-minded and to understand unsolved difficulties.

Speaking at the July 26 Party meeting, Xi asked officials to keep in mind that “China is still in the primary stage of socialism and there still are many challenges and difficulties in the way ahead”, adding that they should always maintain a sense of crisis.

Yan Shuhan, a researcher of socialist systems at the CPC Central Committee Party School, said as the Party continues to fulfill its goals, problems and unexpected difficulties may continue to emerge.

“Therefore, Xi’s reminding officials to be aware of challenges and difficulties is necessary and important,” he said. “Officials mustn’t become complacent about existing accomplishments and need to go on studying new things and new problems.”

Professor Tao Wenzhao, a researcher on socialism with Chinese characteristics at Renmin University of China, said one of the reasons the Party has been so successful is that it has always been aware of its circumstances.

“Officials must always take disadvantages and the likelihood of unexpected situations into consideration . ... This is crucial to whether the Party can meet its goals,” Tao said.