(YicaiGlobal)
Dec. 30 — Pakistan is home to diverse political parties. Yet on a
Wednesday afternoon, on Dec 28, the ‘big shots’ of each political
faction gathered together at an ordinary cafe in Beijing. “This may well
mark the first such event in Pakistan’s history,” a Pakistani diplomat
told YicaiGlobal.
At the cafe near Dengshikou, downtown Beijing, chief ministers of
four provinces of Pakistan, and the minister of planning, development
and reforms and the minister of railways in the federal government
gathered together to discuss details about the upcoming 6th Joint
Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting on the Long-Term Planning of
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which marks the only all-round
bilateral CPEC meeting at a top level in 2016.
During an exclusive interview with YicaiGlobal,
Ashan Iqbal, Pakistani co-chairman of the JCC and the minister of
planning, development and reforms of Pakistan, said the fact that the
chief ministers of all provinces of Pakistan will attend the 6th JCC
meeting reflects the political commitment of the Pakistani leadership to
the CPEC.
“In my view, the attendance of the chief ministers of each province
at this meeting in China sends out a positive signal for investors,
demonstrating Pakistan’s unified all-party support for the CPEC. This
project is expected to be accomplished at a faster pace under the
stronger political commitment and support of each province” Iqbal
pointed out.
CPEC and Chinese investments in Pakistan not only serve as main
drivers for the economic growth of Pakistan against the backdrop of
sluggish global economy, but have also improved the confidence of
international institutions and investors, including the World Bank and
the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in the development of Pakistan.
Additionally, they have also helped boost political consensus and
solidarity between the ruling party and the opposition parties, as well
as between the federal government and local provinces. This is evidently
reflected by the gathering of top Pakistani officials from different
political factions and provinces in Beijing.
Railway And Port Projects Are Center Pieces for Future Development
On Dec. 29, the sixth conference of the JCC, as one of the flagship
projects of the “Belt and Road” strategy, convened in Beijing. Both
parties discussed future development plans as well as some newly added
projects. The conference has concluded the development of Gwadar Port
and the China-Pakistan Railway projects will be the focus for the future
development of the bilateral cooperation within the CPEC framework.
The idea to set up the CPEC first emerged in 2013. During President
Xi Jinping’s visit to Pakistan last year, both countries announced the
project, with Gwadar Port, energy, traffic infrastructure, and
industrial cooperation decided to be central underpinnings of the CPEC’s
work sphere. To this aim, they signed more than 50 cooperation
agreements with total investments exceeding USD40 billion.
Just before Yicai Global’s exclusive interview with Iqbal, Pervez
Khattak, chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), a northwestern
province of Pakistan, came to Iqbal in quick pace as soon as he saw him.
They shook hands and patted on shoulders. In fact, during the CPEC
process over the past two years, Khattak was said to be a troublemaker
for Iqbal.
Khattak and Imran Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Movement for Justice
(PTI) and an opposition member, who appointed Khattak as the chief
minister at the time, were once publicly active critics of Ashan Iqbal
and current prime minister Nawaz Sharif. They accused Sharif and Iqbal
of unfair and problematic implementation of the CPEC, saying that they
ignored the interests of the west Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other provinces
controlled by the opposition parties and made more favors to provinces
like Punjab controlled by the ruling party.
Among the ruling cadres of Pakistan, Iqbal acts as a key figure of
the Muslim League led by Sharif. He is one of the most trusted officials
of Sharif, whereas Khattak is one of the most loyal followers of Imran
Khan, a political rival of the Muslim League.
However, CPEC and more than USD40 billion investments the project
generates has also functioned as a driver for cooperation among
different political parties and provinces in Pakistan as much as it has
led to competition for various projects and resources.
Vision Brought by a Light Rail
During the JCC conference on Dec.29, Chinese and Pakistani officials discussed whether to add more projects to the CPEC, YicaiGlobal
learned. Many projects will cover provinces controlled by the
opposition, like Sindh controlled by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and
other less developed provinces including Balochistan and KP, which had
doubts about the project implementation by the ruling party.
Balochistan is the province where Gwadar Port, the main strategic
project of the CPEC, is located. It is the largest province with the
least population in Pakistan, which is remote and less developed. The
JCC conference discussed ways for further development of Gwadar Port and
the Gwadar Free Trade Zone, as well as construction of supporting
facilities.
Khattak also came prepared, along with the CEO of Special Economic
Zone Development and Management Company of KP. During the meeting with
some Chinese entrepreneurs, Khattak’s delegation of chief ministers made
it clear that financing and investment in industrial parks and
development zones is what KP needs the most, and expressed interest in
cooperating with Chinese organizations in such fields as energy,
education and information.
Located in the southeastern part of Pakistan, Sindh is Pakistan’s
main economic province and home of the opposition party PPP. Pakistan’s
economic and financial center Karachi city and important transport hub
Karachi port are also situated in Sindh province.
In an exclusive interview with Yicai Global, Syed Murad Ali Shah,
Sindh’s chief minister, said the CPEC initiative was originally proposed
in 2013 when the PPP was in power, adding that he is pleased to see the
continuation of the cooperation on CPEC project despite power changes
hands among Pakistani parties.
Set up in 2013, the JCC witnessed multiple changes in the Pakistani
government and political parties, but the cooperation between China and
Pakistan and the cooperation on CPEC project have continued. Syed Murad
Ali Shah told Yicai Global that at the JCC meeting Sindh wanted to add
the Karachi ring road project to the CPEC scheme.
The ruling party-controlled Punjab province has previously
implemented the light rail orange line project in its provincial capital
city of Lahore. With loans offered by Chinese financial institutions
and the construction work by Chinese enterprises, the project will
become Pakistan’s first light rail system after completion. The
construction of the light rail has also drawn attention from other the
provinces of Pakistan.
Ashan Iqbal told Yicai Global that Pakistan’s federal government and
prime minister are concerned about many underdeveloped parts of Pakistan
and they hope that through the construction of CPEC, the remote and
backward areas of Balochistan and KP provinces can get more investment
opportunities to enable them to achieve more trade in and out of
Pakistan.
“We hope that further projects in more provinces will be initiated
under the framework of the CPEC cooperation process so that more
provinces could be involved in it. The achievements and dividends of the
CPEC will benefit all parts of Pakistan and create inclusive
development in the country, ” Iqbal noted.
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