MINISTER for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Prof. Ahsan Iqbal has declared that there is complete agreement between leadership of Pakistan and China on the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, known as CPEC-2. Chairing a meeting to review progress on implementation of CPEC related projects, the minister said his visit to China last week was a continuation of the PM’s discussions with the Chinese president and prime minister, which focused on the strategic implementation of these decisions to ensure the success of CPEC 2.0.
It is a matter of satisfaction that the Minister, who played a pivotal role from concept to implementation stages of the CPEC, is once again instrumental to revive the lost momentum of the historic initiative. Ahsan Iqbal is a personality imbued with the spirit of doing something special for Pakistan and therefore, he is doing at his level best to remove irritants in the way of smooth implementation of all CPEC-related projects. The remarks he made during the review meeting show the Minister was mindful of the fact that several years were lost after change of government in the wake of 2018 elections when progress on CPEC slowed under foreign pressure. During the five day visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to China, both countries committed to “forging an upgraded version” of the multi-billion-dollar CPEC, by boosting construction, mining and exploration, and industrial cooperation. They also signed 23 agreements and Memoranda of Understanding, or MOUs, in a myriad of fields including cooperation on agriculture, infrastructure, industrial cooperation, inter-governmental development assistance, market regulation, surveying and mapping, media, and film. The Planning Minister, who is coordinating all CPEC-related activities, is now in touch with different ministries and departments to ensure follow up of the visit. He has urged the Ministry of Railways to expedite the documentation and preparatory steps for the ML1 project and hopefully an early meeting of the Joint Financing Committee of Pakistan and China would pave the way for implementation of this much-delayed project of national importance. Pakistan Railway and National Highway Authority (NHA)have also been asked to prepare a comprehensive master plan for road construction across the region, outlining how CPEC and Pakistan can play a pivotal role in connecting the entire region and serve as an engine of global economic growth. Hopefully, tangible progress on the CPEC front would be visible in months to come, especially when China is more than ready to cooperate.
