ISLAMABAD – Acting Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China, Zhao LijanFriday said that under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), westernroute of the project would be completed earlier than the eastern route.
Speaking at the National Press Club here about CPEC Project, the Chineseenvoy dispelled rumors about the Western Route and said that western routeof CPEC would be completed earlier than the eastern route.
He said work on various project under the CPEC was going with full speedand 22 projects would be completed during the current year while 18projects would be completed next year.He said around 70,000 Pakistanis had got employment in these projects.
The Chinese envoy said under the CPEC, the government had plan to completea total of 200 projects till 2030 which would provide jobs to hundreds ofthousands of people.He expressed the hope that the next government in Pakistan would alsocontinue the pace of progress on CPEC projects.
About Gwadar Port, he said, Gwadar International Airport would be completedin October this year. He said fisheries was an important sector of Gwadarand establishing a re-processing plant at the port Pakistan could furtherincrease its exports.
He invited the overseas Pakistanis to come to their country and invest inGwadar Port, adding that more than 30 Pakistanis companies had beenregistered at the Port.
He said the investors were being provided facilities of electricity, gas,water and wifai.In energy projects under the CPEC, he said, $13 billion were beinginvested, adding that several energy projects had been completed which hadovercome load-shedding problem in Pakistan to a great extent.Under the CPEC, he said industrial parts would be established in Pakistan.
To a question, he said Pakistani were hard workers and capable people andif they could make an atomic bomb then stabilizing their economy was not abig task for them. He said in the 1970s decade Pakistan’s Gross DomesticProduct (GDP) was equal to China, adding that today’s success story ofChina was a result of hard work and dedication of Chinese people.He said that China desired improvement in Pak-India relations and bothPakistan and India could resolve their issues with peaceful dialogue.