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Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan is expected to visit Beijing in early February. The visit is aimed at fast-tracking progress on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects and further strengthening ties between the two strategic partners.
This will be the Pakistan premier’s fourth visit to China after his last visit in October 2019. Chinese President Xi Jinping cancelled all his official visits since the beginning of the pandemic.
Various projects for Gwadar Smart City Master plan under CPEC approved
Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan received a comprehensive briefing about the development projects in Balochistan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and the government programs.
The PM chaired a meeting here to review the progress of development projects in Balochistan. The meeting was given a comprehensive overview regarding improvement in governance structure, execution of government-to-government projects, fisheries sector, command area development, agriculture sector and the establishment of nursing colleges.
It was also given a detailed briefing on road networks, power sector projects, projects by maritime affairs, information technology and telecom sector, industries and production and development projects in Gwadar, the hub of the CPEC.
The PM directed the concerned stakeholders to speed up the projects, especially those that have high impact on the livelihoods of the locals.
He underlined that uplift of the people of Balochistan was among top priorities of his government. “The government has prioritized the development projects according to their impact on the livelihood of the people of Balochistan,” he added.
The meeting was told that a total of 3,788 kilometers of road infrastructure was being developed in Balochistan to improve connectivity under the CPEC and government programs. The projects are already ahead of their stipulated timelines.
Moreover, 796 km Karachi-Quetta-Chaman Road project was also underway and its on-ground work would commence very soon.
Pakistan and China are jointly building a modern medical facility worth $100 million in Gwadar under the game changer China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.
The Chinese government is financing the Pak-China Friendship Hospital being established over 68 acres of land that will provide quality health facilities to people of the port city.
While illegal fishing trawlers that had been addressed on a priority basis by the agencies concerned through improved patrolling. In addition to that, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs in collaboration with Kamyab Jawan Programme was providing loans to local fishermen for improvement of techniques and their boats, which included the installation of vehicle monitoring system.
The meeting was also updated about the establishment of 1.2 million gallon water plant in Gwadar, which was expected to be completed before summer this year.
The prime minister has ordered the removal of 37 regulations to ensure one-window operation for foreign investors and slash the bureaucratic red-tape and has also directed officials to personally brief him on progress on CPEC projects every 15 days.
Federal ministers Shaukat Tarin, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, Murad Saeed, Asad Umar, Hammad Azhar and Syed Ali Haider Zaidi, Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Quddus Bazenjo, Special Assistant to the PM on CPEC Khalid Mansoor, and senior civil and military officers concerned attended the meeting.
In the last years, China had invested over $25 billion in Pakistan on CPEC projects, creating 75,000 jobs, producing 5500kw of electricity and building over 500 kilometres of roads, said Ambassador of China to Pakistan Nong Rong.
In 2021, Pakistan and China held several virtual and physical celebrations to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China.
This week, PM Imran Khan attended the launch ceremony of the Pakistan-China business and investment forum in Islamabad. He said the joint ventures and collaboration will enhance the country’s exports through the industrialization process as the second phase of the CPEC focuses on industrialization and the agricultural sector of Pakistan.
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