Muhammad Zamir Assadi
ISLAMABAD : Eulogizing China’s continued support for Pakistan, the Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Prof Ahsan Iqbal said that the iron brother country has been supporting infrastructure development in Pakistan since President Xi Jinping during his visit announced to invest $46 billion under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in 2014.
Speaking at “” organized by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).
He said this agreement followed by an investment inflow of $29 billion in the same year. These investments proved instrumental for CPEC and supported development of infrastructure such as road networks and introduced alternative energy sources in the country.
He said that the government is reinvigorating to complete development of 9 Special Economic Zones in Pakistan and move to strengthening industrial cooperation. He termed political stability, social solidarity and continuity of policies as the prerequisites for socio-economic progress and prosperity.
He said that creating an enabling environment for business to business relations is key to attract and avail foreign investments in the country and re-emphasized government’s commitment to fast track green development projects under CPEC.
China’s Ambassador to Pakistan H.E. Nong Rong said that the prime focus of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and CPEC is on on sustainable initiatives in green infrastructure, green energy, green finance and modern agriculture.
He said China as an iron brother is committed to support Pakistan in realizing its green development vision through knowledge sharing and technology transfers. The Ambassador said that under CPEC projects, employment has been generated for people in Pakistan and the projects have benefitted the people in different ways
. He expressed the hope that Pak-China cooperation in green development will emerge as a driving force in CPEC and will further strengthen brotherly relations between the two nations. He recalled the Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s exhibited commitment to further cement relations between the two countries.
Dr Abid Suleri, Executive Director SDPI, said that the green development of CPEC is crucial keeping in mind the triple planetary crisis and climate change in particular. Pakistan has witnessed unprecedented challenge of extreme climate events in recent years in the form of flash floods and heat waves. At the same time, no country is immune to climate change
. He said that in future, Pakistan and China will be focusing on modern agriculture and livestock farming due to the harsh impacts of climate change on agriculture. He said we have already witnessed 40% reduction in mango harvest and similar impact on wheat produce.
He said that there is an agreement on focusing on increasing cooperation in areas of research and development especially for climate smart agriculture and tapping in the true potential of Gwadar.
Ambassador of Pakistan to China H.E. Moin-ul-Haque said that CPEC has transformed the landscape of Pakistan due to its all encompassing nature and has driven development and employment in the remotest areas in Pakistan. He commended that CPEC projects are taking environment, ecology, biodiversity into consideration.
He said that agriculture is now key area of cooperation and special working group has been formulated as well as action plan to bolster cooperation in agriculture sector. He said that China offers great knowledge in terms of developing hybrid seeds, irrigation system, cold chain systems and bring value addition to agricultural produce.
Former Chairman Pakistan Board of Investment, Haroon Sharif said we need to ensure financing for green development; it is estimated that Pakistan needs $16 billion annually for the next 10 years and particularly $2-3 billion would be needed for climate resilience. He suggested that in order to attract investments from private financial markets, Pakistan must install strong governance for effective finance utilization mechanism.
Some projects from green transport and infrastructure should be used as a marketing model to attract investors. He said Pakistan needs to work on expanding its knowledge base and technology transfer through joint projects to raise productivity and competitiveness.
N. A. Zuberi, Senior Advisor China Three Gorges South Asia Investment Limited said that socio-economic condition of Pakistan has improved in response t0 $19 Billion invested by Chinese companies since 2014. He said that Chinese investors have taken the risk of investment, construction, completion and maintenance of projects but they are facing financial risks due to return on equity issues.
He said that Chinese investments are focused on renewable energy generation to mitigate the energy crisis in the country. Presently, 6,039 MW of installed power generation capacity has already been put into operation, which includes 1,440 MW of clean and green energy based on hydro, wind and solar resource (720 MW Hydel, 400 MW Solar, 300 MW Wind. However, Pakistan’s transmission network needs to improve to reduce line losses.
Dr. Hassan Daud Butt, CEO, KP Board of Investment and Trade (KPBOIT) said that green development of CPEC offers a new development paradigm through infrastructure investments necessary to mitigate climate change. He appreciated the role of private sector for infrastructure construction and bridging financial gap for promising green technologies. By 2050, the share of renewable energy sector is expected to grow by 80% and offers huge investment opportunity. He said that from 2014-19, China has invested over US $117 Billion in green development of Belt and Road Initiative.
