Third party inclusion to boost CPEC benefits

The project has transformed socioeconomic landscape of Pakistan, says political analyst

ISLAMABAD:

Third-party inclusion in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project (CPEC) would not only enhance the outcomes of the project in the next decade of development but would also boost socio-economic development in Pakistan and the region, a political analyst said on Thursday.

“The CPEC is an open corridor, and both Pakistan and China will welcome the inclusion of any third party in this multi-billion-dollar deal,” said political analyst and research fellow of the China International Press Communication Centre, Muhammad Zamir Assadi.

The investment, he said, could either be in the form of foreign governments or foreign enterprises. “The project has transformed the socioeconomic landscape of Pakistan, and much more will be generated in the next phase,” he added.

It is pertinent to mention here that CPEC was launched in 2013 as a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), linking Gwadar Port with Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region with a special focus on energy, transportation, and industrial cooperation.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 27^th, 2024.