ISLAMABAD – In a positive economic development, $23 billion investment tobe injected in Pakistan economy.
Minister for Planning, Development, and Reform, Khusro Bakhtyar has saidthat China has decided to invest $10 billion in oil and gas, $4 billion inlocal manufacturing and steel sector and $9 billion have been approved forML-I railway project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
He announced this while addressing the 3rd annual two-day conference onCPEC Consortium of Universities.
The government has taken several important decisions that paved the way forthe finalization of the Gwadar master plan and preliminary design of theML-1 project, operationalization of Gwadar Port and free zone, said theminister. He added that the industrial base of the country will be expandedunder the next phase of CPEC to help increase national exports.
Khusro maintained that the government has established a CPEC Authoritywhich will provide one-window access to all the CPEC related issues so that“we can increase the pace of projects and remove all the bottlenecks forefficient implementation of the projects.”
About CPEC, he said that it will be a gateway for progress and prosperity.China has a total trade volume of $4,000 billion, however, Pakistan onlyhas a small $80 billion trade volume in the global market.
He said that the Chinese government is investing $1 billion in thesocio-economic sector in two years including cooperation in highereducation. The Chinese government has also offered 20,000 scholarships forPakistani students besides financing to build one thousand small schools indifferent areas of the country.
Khusro said that in the 9th JCC, China and Pakistan had decided to extendindustrial, agriculture and infrastructural cooperation to initiatedifferent projects in those areas.
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We have broadened the cooperation through the CPEC in the areas ofsocio-economic development, agriculture, industries, infrastructure, energyand people-to-people contacts through universities for enhancingmultilateral relations between the two countries.
The minister said that a diagnostic study through research is required forevaluating different potential sectors to harmonize the socio-economicdevelopment of both sides.
He said that the government wants to add new sectors including iron, minesand minerals, oil and gas, copper, pipeline, textiles, and automobile toexploit the potential of trade through the CPEC.
While addressing the conference, Ambassador of China to Pakistan Yao Jingsaid that Universities Consortium on CPEC will play a vital role in thecompletion of this mega project.
He said that CPEC provides a platform for cooperation to connect thesocieties, institutions, and people of both sides.
