'Misleading figures' about Gwadar Port cargo claim
Pakistan
Gwadar Port cargo claim exposed: PM’s figures don’t add up
LAHORE (Dunya Investigation Cell) – Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif inaugurated the China Expo Centre in Gwadar and said the previous government neglected development projects in Gwadar during its four-year rule.
The PM criticised the former government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and said that during the last four years, only 100,000 tons of cargo was transported from Gwadar Port and the PDM coalition government transported 600,000 tons in more than one year.
In fact, the statistics disseminated by the PM seems contradictory. During the four-year period of the previous government, a total of 188,903 tons of goods were transported at Gwadar Port, of which 180,695 tons of goods were imported while 8,208 tons of goods were exported.
Similarly, during the tenure of Sharif, in the first nine months of the last fiscal year 2022-23 (July to March), a total of 138,200 tons of goods were transported, which is much less than the figure claimed by the premier.
Gwadar Port was inaugurated in March 2007. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, from the financial year 2007-08 to 2022-23, a total of 6,808,282 tons of goods were handled at the port, in which 6,794,380 tons of goods were imported and 13,902 tons of goods were exported.
The port imported 63,608 tons of goods in the first fiscal year 2007-08 after its inauguration, while no goods were exported from the port this year.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) during its five-year rule imported 5,167,908 tons of goods from the port from FY 2008-09 to 2012-13, however, during this period, no goods of any kind were imported from the port.
The goods were not exported; a record 1,496,514 tons of goods were imported from the port in the financial year 2008-09.
In 2009-10, as much as 1,261,842 tons of goods were imported from the port.
In the financial year 2010-11, as much as 475, 966 tons of goods were imported from the port.
During the financial year 2011-12, around 1426,004 tons of goods were imported from the port. In 2012-13, around 507,582 tons of goods were imported from the port. No goods were exported from 2007-08 to 2013-14.
During the Pakistan Muslim League's (N) five-year rule from 2013-14 to 2018-17 , a total of 1,249,663 tons of goods were transported from the port, of which 1,243,969 tons of goods were imported and 500,694 tons of goods were exported. Thus, during the regime, the movement of goods at the port decreased by 3,918,245 tons in comparison with the regime of the PPP.
During the four-year government of the PTI, the Gwadar Port transported 188,903 tons of goods from 2018-19 to the fiscal year 2021-22, of which 180,695 tons were imported and 8,208 tons of goods exported.
Thus, during the regime of the PTI, there was a decrease of 106,060 tons in the movement of goods at the port in comparison with the regime of Muslim League (N).
In the financial year 2018-19, a total of 4,954 tons of goods were transported from the port, of which 3,637 tons of goods were imported and 1,317 tons of goods exported.
In 2019-20, a total of 27,260 tons of goods were transported from the port, of which 26,553 tons of goods were imported and 707 ton exported.
In 2020-21, a total of 54,697 tons of goods were transported from the port, of which 50,945 tons of goods were imported and 3,752 tons exported.
In 2021-22, a total of 101,992 tons of goods were transported out of which 99,560 tons were imported and 2,432 tons were exported.
After the PDM coalition government came to power, in the last fiscal year 2022-23 (July to March), 138,200 tons of goods were imported from the port, while no goods were exported from the port during this entire period.
