Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif says China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is laying foundation for sustained indigenous economic modernization.
In an exclusive interview with the Chinese daily, Global Times, he said the CPEC has helped Pakistan reduce the bottlenecks caused by past power shortages and weak infrastructure.
Pakistan will continue to work closely with China to enhance the momentum of cooperation between the two countries.
The construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has become more concrete after achieving an early harvest phase focused on energy and infrastructure development.
We hope to complete major infrastructure projects as soon as possible, including the strategic Pakistan Main Line 1 which will further accelerate the transfer of industries and help consolidate our integration into global value chains.
The two countries support each other on the issue of mutual core interests and Pakistan has always firmly supported the One China Policy and believed that Taiwan is its an inalienable part.
Pakistan is also one of the main partners in global development initiatives.
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project is a win-win project of China-Pakistan economic cooperation.
Besides diversifying Chinese supply lines CPEC will prove to be catalyst for socio-economic development of Pakistan.
CPEC is a game changer project not only for Pakistan, but also for the entire region, based on the idea of shared development. CPEC is a manifestation of China's special relationship with Pakistan.
Initiatives of CPEC include construction of road networks, extending from Gwadar Port to Khunjerab Pass, up-gradation of ML-1, power projects of 10,000 megawatts and Gwadar-Nawabshah pipeline to transport gas from Iran.
CPEC is estimated to generate six to eight billion rupees per annum just in taxes as roads and bridges toll.
Overall, 2.3 million jobs are expected to be created between 2015-2030, resulting in more than 2.5 percent annual rise in GDP.
CPEC has made a remarkable progress in the first phase. Majority of the projects planned in the construction, infrastructure and energy sectors have been carried out successfully and many are in the execution stage.
The second stage will further focus on industrialization, agriculture, modernization and socio-economic development.
Credits
Host: Hassan Gilani
Producer: Sajjad Amir
Executive Producer: Aman Ullah Sipra
