*ISLAMABAD: *The people of Pakistan have started to benefit from thecompletion of some of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects,but “it is just the beginning of CPEC and a big change is taking place”,said a senior journalist Shaukat Paracha.
Paracha stated this during an interview with Xinhua during his recent visitto Port Qasim Coal-fired Power Plant, the first unit of which started togenerate clean and cheap electricity for the energy-thirsty country lastyear, marking the second of the major energy projects under CPEC.
The 1,320 megawatts power plant in full operation could provide enoughpower to about four million local families a year.
A reporter from the Associated Press of Pakistan Ziaul Amin has reported onCPEC for a long time, but had never before visited Gwadar.
After the recent Gwadar visit organised by the Chinese Embassy in Pakistanand the country’s Ministry of Planning and Development, Amin said thatlocal people were very happy over the hospital and training centreestablished under CPEC.
“CPEC is expected to provide 800,000 jobs to Pakistani people in the nextfew years, which will be a great contribution to relieve Pakistan’s highunemployment rate,” said Amin.
From a small, remote and less-developed fishing village, Gwadar Port wasnow embracing its new identity of Pakistan’s ‘Shenzhen’ with fullyfunctional port terminal, free zone, business centre and, more importantly,a visible future of development and prosperity.
According to the China Overseas Ports Holding Co, the operator of GwadarPort, some 30 companies in different businesses such as hotel, bank,logistics and fish processing had already joined the Gwadar free zone withexpectations of generating $790.5 million annually after full operation.
In January, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated the first phaseof Gwadar Port’s Free Zone, expecting that the free zone would improvePakistan’s trade with regional and global partners under CPEC to bringdividends of free trade to the economy and betterment in people’s lives.
Pakistan Television anchor Yasir Rehman explained, “When infrastructure isdeveloped, it brings stimulus to the economy, creates jobs and improvesbusinesses by starting a constructive process.”
He said, “Uninterrupted power supply from CPEC energy projects will helpindustries increase production creating an ideal atmosphere for theeconomy. And with the functionalised Gwadar Port for its regular commercialcargo, CPEC will leave significant improvements for every common Pakistani.”
Rehman also appreciated the Chinese companies working on CPEC forfulfilling their corporate social responsibilities.
“I saw local girls studying in a school established with Chinese support inGwadar, and if it had not been established, these girls would not have hadany possibility to go to any other area for studies due to local taboos,”said Rehman, adding that education was the right prescription foreliminating poverty.
“Hospitals, schools and vocational training centres were a dream in once asmall fishing town of Gwadar, but now the youngsters from Gwadar are beingprovided with the ideal facilities to study and have a chance to changetheir lives,” he added.
Paracha said, “A chance of development is coming to Pakistan, and wealtogether, including political, military and intellectual leadership,should grab it. We should make collective efforts so that CPEC can become acollective benefit for the whole region.” – Xinhua