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CPEC updates at Gwadar

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Gwadar Eastbay Expressway.......


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Logistics services to kick off at Gwadar...​

April 4, 2022
tribune.com.pk

To make Gwadar a logistic hub, the government is gearing up to put into action a mega initiative in the city for automation, standardisation and harmonisation of all logistic services related to land, air and sea routes under the Pakistan Single Window (PSW) in six months.

In collaboration with the National Logistics Cell (NLC), the mega initiative aims to facilitate customers (importers and exporters) by guiding and providing all logistics solutions under one window operation. It connects the Web-based One Customs (WeBOC) system with the Gwadar Port, customs, banking channels and other institutions to increase efficiency and reduce the time taken for processing in various departments.

“This will enhance the ease of doing business in Pakistan and as a result, it will improve the country’s image and attract foreign direct investment,” an NLC official said. “Licences, permits and other documents issued for imports or exports not only take time but also cost money, which is paid by businessmen,” he said. For instance, an import container in Pakistan bears a cost of $417 and takes 216 hours in the regulation process.

In comparison, the neighbouring country incurs a cost of only $366 and takes 85 hours to clear the same container, while South Korea clears the container in only seven working hours and bears a cost of $342. Meanwhile, he said “when the container is exported, it costs $406 and takes 113 hours in Pakistan in comparison to $64 and 207 hours in a neighbouring country and $196 and 14 hours in Korea.

So in Pakistan, the cost is so high that it hampers our trade with other countries.” In an exclusive interview, NLC Senior Manager Ashfaq said that in connection with extending quality logistics services to the business community and ensuring ease of doing business, National Logistics Cell (NLC) opened a dedicated office at the Gwadar Port in October 2021. He expected that within six months, NLC will digitalise all logistic processes and procedures to make sure that all kinds of licenses, permits, NOCs and other legal documents are issued to traders within a minimum time under the one window operation.

Gwadar Port Authority (GPA) Chairman Naseer Khan Kashani said that the initiative by NLC, the first of its kind by any logistics organisation in Pakistan, will help resolve the problems currently being faced by traders in movement of goods via road from the Gwadar port. “The office will serve as a facilitation centre by providing transportation services to exporters and importers using the country’s deep seaport,” he added. “As the number of ships docking at the Gwadar port is gaining momentum, there is a need to put in place a vibrant system of logistics services for timely movement of cargo,” he mentioned.

“NLC took the lead to establish the missing link. Besides providing its own resources, NLC will also connect shippers with other truckers and offer end-to-end logistics solutions.” A Gwadar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) official said that a large number of government departments and organisations have prescribed multiple “Registrations, Licenses, Certificates and Other permits (RLCOs)” for establishing and operating businesses.

Many of these RLCOs envisage cumbersome processing through manual application procedures. The launch of the mega initiative in Gwadar will reduce the compliance burden on businesses, he said. “Gwadar mega initiative through NLC connects government’s 49 trade regulators will help decrease cost and time of the entire process,” it said. A single window is a facility that permits parties involved in trade and transport to lodge standardised information and documents with a single entry point to fulfil all import, export, and transit-related regulatory requirements.
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Gwadar has commenced its foremost #LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) Terminal.
The new provision was officially initiated by the Chinese Counsel General in Karachi, Li Bijian.

Functioning began with the advent of the Gas Carrier Gas Esco, transporting 3,900 tonnes of LPG on a voyage from Sohar in Oman.

“Today a new era of economic development has commenced in Balochistan’s port city of Gwadar as International LPG trade has trade has started here.” Counsel General Li Bijian quoted while the inauguration ceremony
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Gwadar Port on the fast track..

Gwadar Port has taken on a new look in the past five years. The port roads, storage yards, loading and unloading equipment, seawater desalination, oil supply and port monitoring facilities have been further improved.

Five new container bridge cranes; 100,000-m2 storage yards; container scanning equipment; the 220,000-gal desalination plant; two sewage treatment systems; 80,000-m2 new green space; and the new LPG receiving station have made the port capable of handling bulk cargo, containers, roll-on roll-off cargo and LPG.

The container liner service was officially launched at Gwadar Port on March 7, 2018. The Gwadar–Middle East Express was opened, connecting Gwadar with other major ports in the world.

The Gwadar Port Free Trade Zone covers an area of 923 hectares and is constructed in four phases in two zones, one in north and one in south. On January 28, 2018, the Gwadar Free Zone Phase 1 was formally completed and put into operation, and the investment financing was also completed simultaneously.

More than 30 Chinese and Pakistani enterprises, including hospitality, banking, insurance, financial leasing, logistics, overseas warehousing, grain and oil processing, fishery processing and home appliance assembly, started working at the free zone.

The direct investment exceeded RMB3 billion. These enterprises will accomplish an annual output value of over RMB5 billion and create more than 5,000 jobs after all being put into operation. The Gwadar Faqeer Primary School, which was completed in September 2016, has developed rapidly, with a planned enrollment of 150 students and an actual enrollment of 500 students.

The school achieved a pass rate of over 95% in the spring student examination in 2019, making it the best school in Balochistan in terms of teaching quality. In May 2017, the China–Pakistan Fraternity Emergency Care Center assisted by the Red Cross Society of China was completed in Gwadar Port.

The Chinese Red Cross Foundation sent three medical teams to work in the region. By the end of 2018, the center received 2,302 Chinese and Pakistani patients.

The desalination plant for the Gwadar Free Zone was completed and put into operation in 2018, with a daily production capacity of 1,000 tons of drinking water. It is noted that Gwadar’s population grew from 60,000 to 130,000 in just five years.
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Wow. The Arabian Sea looks so beautiful. This strip can perhaps support tourism in future :cheers:
 
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USF to launch fibre-optic, 4G services in Gwadar

Kalbe Ali
May 3, 2022

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The Universal Service Fund (USF) is set to launch a fibre-optic project for Gwadar to bring 4G compatible high speed internet and telecom services to the region. The project is expected to be completed by the middle of next year.

The USF has finalised paperwork for several projects, including 400km fibre-optic project in Gwadar and 4G services in the Loralai area of Balochistan, apart from upgrading data services to 4G in Vehari, Lodhran, Sialkot, Narowal, Nankan Sahib and Sheikhpura of Punjab.

Sources in the Ministry of Information Technology said all these projects were in the process of finalisation and would start work after getting approvals from the USF board. “Tentative date to start these projects is set for the last week of June and will be completed in 12-18 months,” the official said.

Apart from residential and commercial districts, the USF has an extensive plan to cover the national road arteries. The project regarding IT and telecom services on 309km Faisalabad-Multan M4 Motorway is also likely to be launched next month.

About the highways and motorways project, Minister for IT and Telecom Syed Aminul Haque told Dawn that USF’s motorways and national highways programme had achieved broadband coverage on more than 1,929km of unserved road segments across the country.

“We are committed to providing uninterrupted mobile network on all major highways of the country because it enhances safe travel, improves the local economy and eventually boosts the IT and telecom sector,” the minister said.

He added that infrastructure development for uninterrupted high speed mobile broadband services was essential on national highways as it was one of the prerequisites for the country to launch 5G service in future.

The USF projects on Lahore-Abdul Hakeem M3 Motorway and 392km Multan-Sukkur M5 Motorway will be completed by the end of this year.

Makran coastal highway and NH 50-70 in Balochistan have already been covered with telecom services, but work on some part of N-25 (RCD Highway) and N65 (Quetta-Jacobabad Highway) has stalled due to local political issues and the authorities were not giving NOC to install telecom towers.

Haaris Mahmood Chaudhary, the Chief Executive Officer of USF, said the notables of the area, including elected representatives of Balochistan, had been approached to help resolve the matter so that all mainstream highways could be provided coverage.

The upcoming projects of the USF included powering of telecommunication site through solar energy, especially in remote areas where the supply of fuel to power generation is difficult.

Since 2018, the USF has launched 56 projects amounting to more than Rs52 billion for providing optic-fibre cable and broadband services across the country.

The USF is a subsidiary of the IT ministry tasked with expanding internet and telecom services to remote areas of the country where telecom companies and internet service providers do not enter as such areas are not commercially viable.

The fund consists of 1.5 per cent of adjusted revenues of telecom operators and various contracts for development of IT and telecom infrastructures are awarded through auction and the amount is paid from the fund.

Published in Dawn, May 3rd, 2022
 
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