Zubair Qureshi
All Pakistan-China Friendship Association along with representatives of 58 China friendship organizations from 30 countries worldwide jointly discussed the friendly cooperation between people under the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative, at the 5th International Forum on Friendship, organized by the Beijing People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries in Beijing.
At the forum, leaders from many nations applauded its success and spoke excitedly about the future role friendship organizations can play in the BRI as they represent the soft power and voice of their countries.
Mapping a new vision, the one day conclave called for a new era of win-win cooperation for common development between China and countries along the Belt and Road. They agreed to jointly build a closer community with a shared future for mankind featuring mutual respect, fairness, and justice.
Madame Zhang Qian, Executive Vice President welcomed the leaders of the Friendship organizations and presented a video message of Madame He Luli, vice chairman of the Ninth and Tenth Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress and honorary chairman of the BPAFFC. The meeting was also addressed by Madame Yan Aoshuang, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal People’s Congress Standing Committee, Ambassador Lin Songtian, President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries. In his speech Lin Songtian called on international friendly organizations to actively promote the construction of the “Belt and Road” to promote stability and long-term development, heart-to-heart communication among countries along the route, sister-cities exchanges, and to focus on the inclusion of youth, local government officials, think tanks and media representatives. Friendship organizations from Pakistan, Australia, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Cambodia, Germany, France, the United States, Peru, Tunisia, Australia and other five continents addressed the gathering. General Secretary of All Pakistan-China Friendship Association – APCFA, Farwa Zafar in her statement noted that the friendship between Pakistan and China is exemplary, representing the commonwealth of the people of the two nations. She said that the BRI is “The Project of the Century” a buzz word across the globe, focused on redeveloping the ancient silk route, forging closer partnerships, among countries in Asia, Europe and Africa and thereby promoting a community of a shared future, to the benefit of all.
For Pakistan, the BRI has been a game changer, with the launch in 2015 of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as its flagship project.
The CPEC, over the past five years has improved people’s livelihoods, been a driver of Pakistan’s economic growth by one to two percentage points every year and created 70,000 jobs in Pakistan. In Gwadar, the port and Free Zone have already become operational, creating opportunities for employment, investment and commerce.
