High-profile projects of CPEC in completion stage: Chinese Consul General

KARACHI: China is willing to work together with all sectors in Pakistan to construct and efficiently operate the Gwadar’s new international airport, maintain the port’s operations and further develop the free zone, turning Gwadar into a regional trade center, an interconnection hub, and a prosperous and beautiful city, Chinese Consul General Yang Yundong said.

He said this at a ceremony to award the certification of recognizing the contribution made by media at the Chinese Consulate here on Wednesday.

Yundong said China-Pakistan relations have maintained a high-level operation, radiating vitality and dynamism. The two countries have maintained close high-level exchanges with President Xi Jinping meeting Prime Minister Kakar, reaching important consensus on deepening the all-weather strategic cooperation between China and Pakistan, advancing the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and accelerating the establishment of a closer China-Pakistan community of shared future in the new era.

The year 2023 marks the tenth anniversary of the initiation of CPEC. As a pioneering project of the Belt and Road Initiative, CPEC has made significant contributions to Pakistan’s economic development and improvement of people’s livelihoods over the past decade, he said.

He said the comprehensive development of the Growth Corridor, Livelihood Corridor, Innovation Corridor, Green Corridor, and Open Corridor is underway. Railway and road reconstruction projects are progressing rapidly, and specific plans for agricultural cooperation between Xinjiang and Pakistan have been formulated. The first batch of chili exports from Pakistan to China has been smoothly transported, and the Khunjerab Port is preparing to open throughout the year.

The first phase of the Rashakai Special Economic Zone has been completed, marking a new stage of high-quality development for the CPEC, injecting new impetus into the construction of a closer China-Pakistan community of shared future.

According to him, substantial progress has been made in the construction of Gwadar Port, with cargo throughput in the first half of 2023 reaching 1.6 times that of the entire year of 2022.

The Free Zone has attracted 35 registered companies with a planned investment of 3 billion RMB. Business centers, storage centers, tropical plant laboratories, and metal processing plants are already in operation. Chinese-aided schools, the Bo’ai Medical Emergency Center, vocational technical institute, desalination plants, and Friendship Hospital are in operation.

In 2024, China is willing to continue working with Pakistan to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, he said adding that building on the significant milestone achievements in the construction of the CPEC, both sides will further expand and deepen cooperation in industries, agriculture, mining, information technology, and enhance communication and exchanges in localities, youth, and other areas. “Together, we will elevate the China-Pakistan all-weather strategic cooperative partnership to new heights”, he said.

He said media cooperation is an integral part of China-Pakistan collaboration, playing a crucial role in advancing mutual cultural exchanges, fostering people-to-people connectivity, and enriching the bilateral relationship.

Over the past year, media friends have extensively covered high-level interactions between China and Pakistan, the construction of the CPEC, practical cooperation in fields such as economy, trade, technology, education, and military, making significant contributions to enhancing friendship between the two countries and promoting the development of China-Pakistan relations.

“I believe that, with everyone’s joint efforts, the people of China and Pakistan will further enhance mutual understanding and walk hand in hand on the respective development paths”, he said.

He said China’s economy has successfully withstood all the risks and challenges and the downward pressure, and continued to rebound and show positive trends, with the solid advancement of high-quality development. The latest statistics show that the China’s GDP growth in the year of 2023 is 5.2 percent, a little bit higher than expected at the beginning of last year.

Later, the Chinese Consul General awarded the certificates to the journalists to recognize their contribution for Pak-China relations.