Pakistan, China to speed up ML-1, SEZs implementation

[Edevelop]

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have agreed to fast-track work on the implementation of main line (ML-1) railway project and special economic zones (SEZs).

An agreement in this regard was reached between Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal and National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) Chairman Zheng Shanjie during a meeting held in Beijing on Tuesday, according to a press release.

The planning minister is on a four-day official visit to China to commemorate 10 years of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). During his visit, the minister co-chaired a special Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting with the NDRC vice chairman, besides holding several meetings with key Chinese officials.

During a one-on-one meeting with the NDRC chairman, the minister conveyed felicitations of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to Mr Shanjie on assuming his new role and assured him of full support in smooth implementation of CPEC projects.

The NDRC chairman offered to share Chinese expertise and knowledge to enhance Pakistan’s export earnings and accelerate SEZs development.

Both sides decided to hold regular meetings of joint working groups (JWGs) to review ongoing cooperation under the CPEC framework and work closely for the next phase which is much wider in scope and focuses more on industrialisation, agriculture, science and technology and socio-economic development.

PM Shehbaz has already reiterated his full commitment to complete the CPEC projects and in this regard he visited China when he took charge as the prime minister.

Recalling the launch of CPEC a decade ago, the planning minister noted that the development of the corridor had been a remarkable journey. He remarked that since 2013, the relevant institutions from the two sides worked as one team and successfully implemented key energy and physical infrastructure projects, laying a strong foundation for the next phase of CPEC.

The NDRC chairman remarked that China and Pakistan were good friends and partners, adding that despite the vicissitudes of global politics, the two countries have always stood together and extended complete support to each other.

He also appreciated the key role played by Ahsan Iqbal in the development of CPEC. Out of 12 JCC meetings, nine have been co-chaired by Mr Iqbal

Pakistan, China to speed up ML-1, SEZs implementation

Chinese official offers expertise to enhance Pakistan’s export earnings.

www.dawn.com

 

[Hakikat ve Hikmet]

With the West flanking China from all sides Pak seems a potential way out.....

 

[Thəorətic Muslim]

What's the interest rate on these loans?

Do tell oh most smart business inclined janaab.

 

[MajesticPug]

What's the interest rate on these loans?

Do tell oh most smart business inclined janaab.

Lol... Here goes the anxious bellows of 'fear China'.

 

[khansaheeb]

With the West flanking China from all sides Pak seems a potential way out.....

More like a entering into the path of fighting bull elephants. Neocons are all in with India Pakistan has a Hobson's choice.

 

[ziaulislam]

A non electrified ML 1 on non meter gauge is a disaster pending

Chinese have told that to PMLN leaders but they won't listen

Anyway Pakistan is screwed if it takes 10b$ loan and doesn't built a modern rail instead sticks with old inefficient diesel based system

 

[ziaulislam]

It's going to be same level disaster as building shaiwal coal plant..or ghazi brotha or NJ or orange metro line

Please be more careful with your mega project and should be properly planned not bulldozed through

 

[Hakikat ve Hikmet]

More like a entering into the path of fighting bull elephants. Neocons are all in with India Pakistan has a Hobson's choice.

The best part is Neocons are synonymous with misery for the folks they enlist. It's now India's turn.....

 

[khansaheeb]

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have agreed to fast-track work on the implementation of main line (ML-1) railway project and special economic zones (SEZs).

An agreement in this regard was reached between Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal and National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) Chairman Zheng Shanjie during a meeting held in Beijing on Tuesday, according to a press release.

The planning minister is on a four-day official visit to China to commemorate 10 years of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). During his visit, the minister co-chaired a special Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting with the NDRC vice chairman, besides holding several meetings with key Chinese officials.

During a one-on-one meeting with the NDRC chairman, the minister conveyed felicitations of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to Mr Shanjie on assuming his new role and assured him of full support in smooth implementation of CPEC projects.

The NDRC chairman offered to share Chinese expertise and knowledge to enhance Pakistan’s export earnings and accelerate SEZs development.

Both sides decided to hold regular meetings of joint working groups (JWGs) to review ongoing cooperation under the CPEC framework and work closely for the next phase which is much wider in scope and focuses more on industrialisation, agriculture, science and technology and socio-economic development.

PM Shehbaz has already reiterated his full commitment to complete the CPEC projects and in this regard he visited China when he took charge as the prime minister.

Recalling the launch of CPEC a decade ago, the planning minister noted that the development of the corridor had been a remarkable journey. He remarked that since 2013, the relevant institutions from the two sides worked as one team and successfully implemented key energy and physical infrastructure projects, laying a strong foundation for the next phase of CPEC.

The NDRC chairman remarked that China and Pakistan were good friends and partners, adding that despite the vicissitudes of global politics, the two countries have always stood together and extended complete support to each other.

He also appreciated the key role played by Ahsan Iqbal in the development of CPEC. Out of 12 JCC meetings, nine have been co-chaired by Mr Iqbal

Pakistan, China to speed up ML-1, SEZs implementation

Chinese official offers expertise to enhance Pakistan’s export earnings.

www.dawn.com

I don't know if it is due to better communication or real proficiency but PML do seem to show meaningful progress in CPEC projects compared to PTI.

 

[Communism]

I don't know if it is due to better communication or real proficiency but PML do seem to show meaningful progress in CPEC projects compared to PTI.

PTI/Imran Khan was designed by the Pakistani Military Establishment to trade CPEC for free money from the U.S..


They got caught flat footed when the U.S. refused to play along with their scheme.

 

[khansaheeb]

PTI/Imran Khan was designed by the Pakistani Military Establishment to trade CPEC for free money from the U.S..


They got caught flat footed when the U.S. refused to play along with their scheme.

That's a new one! What grotesque conspiracies you Indians come up with.

 

[Communism]

That's a new one! What grotesque conspiracies you Indians come up with.

I track U.S. think tank and State Department Narratives for a living.


PTI/Imran Khan and the Pakistani Military Establishment ticked every box of the main U.S. Think Tank and U.S. State Department Narrative at the time.


Imran Khan's team is literally a group of U.S. "N.G.O.s" and things like former IMF and World Bank officials (Basically U.S. State Department with U.N. cover).


The U.S. refused to play along, and Trump showed the U.S. Establishment's displeasure by cutting U.S. military funding for Pakistan.


The Pakistani Military Establishment didn't realize that the Afghanistan Debacle has left a gigantic scar on the memory of the entire U.S. Establishment.


After that, PTI/Imran Khan and the Pakistani Military Establishment fumbled around trying to get some sort of coherent strategy going for the rest of the term, until Bajwa decided to pull the plug on Imran Khan once he failed so spectacularly hard one too many times.

 

[khansaheeb]

I track U.S. think tank and State Department Narratives for a living.


PTI/Imran Khan and the Pakistani Military Establishment ticked every box of the main U.S. Think Tank and U.S. State Department Narrative at the time.


Imran Khan's team is literally a group of U.S. "N.G.O.s" and things like former IMF and World Bank officials (Basically U.S. State Department with U.N. cover).


The U.S. refused to play along, and Trump showed the U.S. Establishment's displeasure by cutting U.S. military funding for Pakistan.


The Pakistani Military Establishment didn't realize that the Afghanistan Debacle has left a gigantic scar on the memory of the entire U.S. Establishment.


After that, PTI/Imran Khan and the Pakistani Military Establishment fumbled around trying to get some sort of coherent strategy going for the rest of the term, until Bajwa decided to pull the plug on Imran Khan once he failed so spectacularly hard one too many times.

What do you mean?-"PTI/Imran Khan and the Pakistani Military Establishment ticked every box of the main U.S. Think Tank and U.S. State Department Narrative at the time."

and

What doi you mean by :-"The U.S. refused to play along,"

 

[Communism]

What do you mean?-"PTI/Imran Khan and the Pakistani Military Establishment ticked every box of the main U.S. Think Tank and U.S. State Department Narrative at the time."

and

What doi you mean by :-"The U.S. refused to play along,"

Imran Khan's primary election platform was to "Clean up the Corruption and Stop the 'Bad Deals'".


This was the U.S. Think Tanks and State Department narrative for CPEC and the BRI.


The U.S. refused to play along, aka the U.S. refused to pay the Pakistani Military Establishment to destroy CPEC.

 

[FuturePAF]

With the West flanking China from all sides Pak seems a potential way out.....

And Pakistan has a diplomatic solution for how CPEC can be of use to the west; access to the mineral wealth of Central Asia to western companies or GCC/western joint venture companies.

With the only land routes into Central Asia being Russia, China, Iran and Pakistan via Afghanistan, the Pakistan and Afghanistan option is the most “negotiable” route if the Russians and Iranians make the Caspian option “difficult”. The Turks could support Pakistan in opening up this corridor if Pakistan gets ML-1 upgraded, and the $5 Billion rail route through Afghanistan built ASAP,

(the following is a DOD link on the potential of an Afghan railway)

https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA622280.pdf

especially as the Ukraine war drags on. The Turks will also be looking for markets to expand into, as their economy needs a boost if it can get it, so expanding business ventures with their ethnic cousins in central Asian would be naturally, especially as Turkey’s ties with Russia might be about to take a dip after what just happened at the nato summit.

Central Asian nations also want more option than just Russia, Iran and China, especially if they want to have some hope of standing up for their interests and negotiating a better deal with their current partners.

For China, having western investment in Central Asia will see them lose some business, but it will “legitimize” the BRI projects and have western FDI follow Chinese investment, making the Chinese projects more viable as more trade moves over the roads/rails/ and airports the Chinese have been building.

Partnerships between the GCC and China, could see ships moving from Gwadar to GCC ports and the GCC railway to Africa via a subsea tunnel to Djibouti and the rest of Africa, making the GCC the center of east west trade, and their ports more important than ever. It would also be a way to get Yemen in line and fund not only the rebuilding there, but the future economy and therefore the power structure.

A GCC railway, that goes through Iraq and Syria to Turkey would also cut out the Iranian from North/South Trade (from Pakistan and India) if the relation ship goes sour. For the GCC, CPEC and BRI can fit nicely into their diversification goals.

GCC railway set to complete, Iraq to join network: Official

Saudi Arabia is characterized by a strategic location linking it to three major continents, and it has a unique infrastructure, said Loay Mashabi, Dep

www.argaam.com

A new web of Arab railways could transform the Middle East

But old enmities block many of the links

www.economist.com

This would give Pakistan significant and permanent geo-strategic value outside of any warfare. In fact, Pakistan could benefit from keeping out of any war, and that would draw more FDI.

So this news about the ML-1 and speeding up the SEZ (i.e. integration in Chinese supply chains) is excellent news. But this can only go so far, if it is limited to outside efforts. This has to be coupled with domestic reforms. They don’t have to be radical changes all of a sudden as it would disenfranchise and get push back from vested business interests. But it has to be steady and continues if it must be incremental.

We have seen the damage of compounding incremental economic losses over the past year, but we have to realize the power of how fast we can recover if we do incremental reforms continuously say after day for the next 20-40 years. We have to keep in mind the Indian population will only increase another 20% in that time, and ours will increase 60% in the same time. If we do the reforms ASAP, we will reap the most benefit by having faster growth then Indian and attract a lot of the FDI, the way Bangladesh has out attracted FDI the India in certain sectors.

A key thing in these SEZs needs to be apprenticeship schools. We need people to be trained to have the technical skills to be the best factory workers possible for the tasks at hand.

In these SEZs, we need to also have a way to build modular apartment buildings. Not skyscrapers, just get, as we don’t have the stability of our infrastructure to support it, but we need to build housing cheaper so it is more affordable, can be put up in land given to the railways next to train stations so people don’t need to own a car or travel slowly on buses.

Finally, if we upgraded the ML-1 the trains will need to be cheap and run on time without fail.

Continuously lower people’s cost of living and doing business and the excess capital can be invested into healthcare and education, creating the workforce that is globally competitive.

For God Sake do these reforms, and we may be able to pay back these loans being taken out for these projects and maintain some stability.

A real world example of a losing team going to become a consistently winning team with special attention to continuous improvements everyday.