Claiming that western economic powers are reluctant to relinquish control, ICST Patron Shahid Rasheed Butt said the western economic model has failed to provide relief to the masses while commending the ‘Chinese model’ for triggering development of underdeveloped countries.
In a statement, Butt said that CPEC is the stepping stone of the new economic order ‘dominated’ by China which will strengthen the Pakistani economy by boosting domestic production, increasing exports and providing employment.
“A network of 3,218 km of roads, railways and dry ports from Gwadar Port to Kashgar will enhance the lives of about 3 billion people of this region,” Butt stated. “It will also allow China to trade with half of the world’s countries with Pakistan as the connecting link,” he added.
The ICST patron said that the mega project covers the crucial transportation and energy sectors. An energy master plan of power generation projects to overcome energy crisis will benefit Pakistan, he emphasised.
“This project [CPEC] will open new business outlets for businesspersons from China, Pakistan, and Iran,” Butt predicted, hoping that it will also provide a platform for cooperation in Pakistan’s huge agricultural sector and will boost the tourism industry of Pakistan.
He said that CPEC was a historic opportunity for Pakistan to place itself on a high growth trajectory, create jobs, improve and construct critical infrastructure and augment access to energy.
“The only thing required is determination to develop as CPEC has the potential to be one of the biggest economic projects in the future,” he emphasised.The Board of Investment (BoI) has emphasised that the government has a very liberal investment policy in place and denied any agreement between Pakistan and China for keeping other interested countries away from the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
In a statement, the BoI pointed out that the government had initiated a broad and multi-dimensional reform process in a bid to improve the investment climate in Pakistan. “Business opportunities will be equally available to all Pakistani businessmen, Chinese businessmen, enterprises and foreign investors from other countries, either separately or in joint ventures depending on the nature of investment,” it said.
In this regard, the federal cabinet has given the go-ahead to a comprehensive incentive package, which offers broad-based incentives to all investors.
Industrial cooperation under CPEC was aimed at developing Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in each province and region of Pakistan, the BoI said. In this regard, sixth meeting of the Joint Cooperation Committee of CPEC has approved nine SEZs which will be established in Pakistan’s four provinces, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Fata and Islamabad Capital Territory. Appropriate sites for these zones have also been identified by the provincial governments and authorities concerned.
The BoI recalled that an expert-level delegation of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) of China visited Pakistan in the first half of July. It toured SEZ sites and held meetings with government officials and the business community to provide guidelines for the development of economic zones.
During the consultative sessions and meetings, the BoI claimed, the NDRC team praised efforts of Pakistan government for providing attractive incentives and no demand for a 99-year lease of land and providing blanket tax exemptions were made.
“The expert team did not demand any exclusive control over any of the nine SEZs. China has never shown any desire for complete control over SEZs/industrial parks under CPEC,” the BoI said.
