THE efforts being put in by China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC) to transform Gwadar into a state of the art seaport in the world are evident and yet another clear manifestation of Pak-China strong and unshakable bonds.
Chief Executive Officer of COPHC Zhang Baozhong is upbeat about the future prospects of Gwadar saying the port is becoming a node in international shipping. He was confident that Gwadar would be a new economic hub of Pakistan and highest contributor to country’s economy by 2030. Indeed such mega projects take time to become fully operational yet good part is that we are heading for right direction to realise actual potential of the deep-sea port. It was a historic occasion when most recently the port was used for Afghan transit trade, which in fact provides most economical trade route to Afghanistan. The port also provides a great relevance to land locked Central Asian States to look beyond immediate markets. They have wonderful opportunity to realise their dreams of regional connectivity, economic diversification and sustainable growth by conducting marine trade through warm waters of Gwadar port.
The free trade zone there also offers immense opportunities to both the domestic and foreign investors and we expect that since activity at the port is picking up momentum, more investment will pour into the zone once global and regional economy comes out of Covid-19 shocks. The COPHC is not only focusing on improving facilities at the port but also working for welfare of local community, which indeed will open doors of opportunities and livelihoods for local people. We will also urge the government to fully implement Gwadar Master Plan to make it a fulcrum for economic development.