Pakistan’s SEZs under CPEC can help attract investment: PCJCCI

With the acceleration of construction of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), there is a strong wave of international investment led by Chinese enterprises in Pakistan because our textile, leather, pharmaceutical and surgical instrument industries’ products are among the best in the world.

Special Economic Zones (SEZs) of Punjab government, Chairman S.M Naveed expressed these views in an executive committee meeting of Pakistan-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) held here at its Secretariat on Monday.

The meeting was attended by PCJCCI President Moazzam Ghurki, Senior Vice President Fang Yulong, Vice President Hamza Khalid, Secretary General Salahuddin Hanif and other executive members.

S.M Naveed said that large-scale transfer of China’s modern industries to Pakistan would drive the development of Pakistan’s industrial modernisation and help boost Pakistan’s export of advanced industrial products, bringing a large amount of foreign exchange income to Pakistan and enhancing the country’s financial strength.

According to CPEC Authority of Pakistan, he mentioned, the main sectors in which Chinese companies could establish their industries in Pakistani SEZs included textile, footwear, pharmaceutical and information technology (IT) sectors. He added that millions of jobs could be created for the locals through Chinese textile industry, because it employed as many as 2,000 local Pakistanis in one shift. “From here we see that once a large number of Chinese enterprises are landed in Pakistan’s SEZs, millions of jobs will be created for the locals,” he hoped.

S.M. Naveed said that at the same time, local workers working in Chinese enterprises will receive extensive technical training, upgrading human resources development in Pakistan.

On this occasion, PCJCCI president said the best part is that the Chinese side will continue to provide intellectual and technical support to accelerate Pakistan’s priority sectors, especially through the nine SEZs of Pakistan under CPEC wherein three SEZs has been prioritised and are now at an advanced stage of development.

VP Hamza Khalid expressed the confidence that through this cooperation, many Chinese companies will reap benefits of Pakistan’s competitive advantages. It will definitely help in transforming trade potential into investment potential.

Salahuddin Hanif said that the young entrepreneurs of Pakistan should unite to boast the economy of Pakistan through learning contemporary techniques from Chinese enterprises.