Engineering Post Report
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is a long term programme between the two time-tested, all weather and iron brothers neighboring countries China and Pakistan It aims to act as a “Gateway of Prosperity” for both the countries and the region at large.
The CPEC is focused on facilitating industrialization, trade and market access, integration with global value chains, socio-economic development and poverty alleviation, agriculture modernization, Gwadar City and blue economy, regional connectivity, and third-party participation. Moreover, the ambit of cooperation has since also been extended to include cooperation in Science & Information Technology in the overall CPEC framework.
The CPEC would connect Gwadar port in the southwest of Pakistan to China’s northwestern region of Xinjiang via network of highways and railways, covering the entire country from North to South through three different alignments: Easter, Western and Central Alignments, Road infrastructure on the Eastern Alignment has already been completed except the Sukkur-Hyderabad section. On the Western alignment, Dera Ismail Khan-Zhob road has also been conceived. The remaining projects on the alignment have either been completed or under implementation and in varying stages of their completion. The central alignment is expected to start in the third phase of CPEC.
In the first phase of the implementation of CPEC, investments in infrastructure and energy sectors, through the implementation of early harvest projects, have filled in the voids and accelerated the pace of economic growth of the country which will ultimately provide a momentous boost to the economy of Pakistan.
In order to realize the vision of CPEC in letter and spirit, CPEC emphasizes areas which contribute to the socio-economic uplift for the people of Pakistan. Industrialization and Agriculture Modernization are the preferred areas to bring about employment, enhance trade and earn foreign exchange for the country.
Science & Technology cooperation has since also been added as the new avenue of cooperation with an emphasis on technology up gradation and transfer to support the development process under the overall CPEC framework.
Most importantly, the CPEC projects in Pakistan quite significantly are also contributing to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Through extensive infrastructure development and energy projects, CPEC is supporting SDG 9 i.e. industry, innovation and infrastructure. It derives economic growth (SDG 8) by attracting investment, creating jobs, and reducing poverty (SDG 1).
Additionally, CPEC was also addressing energy needs (SDG 7) through investment in diverse energy sources and promoting trade (SDG 17) by strengthening regional cooperation.
Furthermore, CPEC initiatives also aim to build sustainable cities (SDG 11) and emphasize environmental sustainability (SDG 13) through cleaner technologies and adherence to environmental regulations.
