Opportunities like CPEC emerge in decades: Dastgir
Pakistan will welcome Turkmenistan if it joins CPEC.
Dunya News Report (Yaruq Malik)
ISLAMABAD: The minister of commerce, Khurram Dastgir Khan, has stated that Pakistan would welcome Turkmenistan to join the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to enhance the regional connectivity with the port of Gwadar and the Arabian Sea. The minister insisted that Pakistan wishes to build strong ties with regional states to increase the overall trade economics.
“As we move forward to improve regional connectivity, we could further align our economic and trade interests,” the minister said.
While talking at the first Pakistan-Turkmenistan Business Forum, the minister highlighted the fact that the inter-regional connectivity between Pakistan and the Central Asian leadership will be fruitful for bilateral trade and business in the region.
Talking on CPEC, Mr. Khurram said that through CPEC, Pakistan will re-emerge in the world as an economic hub.
“Opportunities like CPEC emerge in decades and in terms of economic significance, it is comparable to the great trade route discoveries of the world,” said the minister.
During the forum talk, it was noted that the trade between Pakistan and Turkmenistan stands at just $25 million. The minister assured that solid steps will be taken by the federal government to overcome the factors that have caused a low trade outcome between the two countries.
“Efforts are being made to overcome these challenges and strengthen ties with special focus on enhanced market access, trade promotion and trade facilitation,” he added.
Previously, the executive secretary of the United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Dr Shamshad Akhtar, praised the initiatives taken by the federal government through projects like CPEC to bring economic prosperity in Pakistan.
The UN official stated that projects like CPEC and the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline will ensure a better living standard for the people in the region and will bring economical development in Pakistan. She also praised the efforts made by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to bring economical reforms in the country through his efforts since he took charge of the office in 2013.
During a meeting with the Prime Minister, Dr Shamshad Akhtar stated that through CPEC, Pakistan will enhance its regional stability. She added that Pakistan’s economy needs an uplift which will be triggered through such projects in the long run (CPEC). Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif stated that the federal government has helped Pakistan to come out of the economical crisis that it faced when the government took charge in 2013.
He also said that the law and order situation in Pakistan has improved immensely due to which Pakistan is viewed as a ‘different’ country as it was viewed a few years ago.
“Our government has pulled the country out of numerous crises and today Pakistan is viewed as a different country from what it was a few years ago.” said the PM.
Moreover, officials from China visited the Port Civic Centre, Gwadar Free Trade Zone, Gwadar Development Authority and Gwadar Port Complex. The team from China Central Development Bank voiced their interest towards investing in Gwadar and the projects that are under the domain of CPEC.
Chairman Gwadar Port Authority (GPA), Dostain Khan Jamaldani, alongside the Director General of Gwadar Development Authority, Sajjad Hussain, welcomed the two Chinese delegations and gave a briefing on the projects currently under work. The Chinese delegations were led by the Vice President of China’s Central Development Bank, Xaio Mingzheng and the Chief of the Centre for Social and Economic Development Research, Duan Linyun.
Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal insists that Pakistan’s business and investment profile has improved internationally with the commencement of CPEC. He said that Pakistan’s economy has improved with the recent efforts made by the federal government and the law and order situation across the country has also shown promising results as compared to the past.
“The world now recognizes Pakistan as the next emerging success story. We have also declared 2016 as the year of productivity, quality and innovation to become competitive on the international market. We are mobilizing the indigenous resources to develop an export thrust for the economy.” he stated.
Under CPEC, China is said to reduce its route cost by thousands of kilometers for its oil and gas imports from Africa and the Middle East.
