CPEC transforms Pakistan to land of FDI: minister

This aerial photo taken on May 23, 2023 shows the Rashakai Special Economic Zone under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in the northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. (China Road and Bridge Corporation/Handout via Xinhua)

ISLAMABAD, May 19 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has been helping transform Pakistan to a land of foreign direct investment opportunities.

Addressing an event on Friday here at the National Defence University, he said the critical importance of peace, stability, and continuous reforms in harnessing the full potential of the CPEC, the planning ministry said in a statement.

Iqbal reiterated that the CPEC is pivotal for Pakistan's roadmap to a trillion-dollar economy by 2030, aligned with the 5Es Framework, focusing on export-led growth.

According to the ministry, the 5Es Framework, a roadmap formulated by the Pakistani government, provides a development plan for economic revival in five areas, including exports, e-Pakistan, environment and climate change, energy and infrastructure, and equity and empowerment.

He stressed the need for sustainable peace, political stability, and policy continuity in Pakistan with the entrance of CPEC in its second phase.

The minister also insisted on the transition of the country from geopolitics to geo-economics, noting that economic strength now determines global standing and influence, according to the statement.

Launched in 2013, the CPEC, a flagship project of the China-proposed BRI, is a corridor linking the Gwadar Port in southwest Pakistan's Balochistan province with Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which highlights energy, transport, and industrial cooperation in the first phase, while in the new phase expands to fields of agriculture and livelihood, among others.