Islamabad: A 13-member group of Chinese experts has shortlisted 20 projects for implementation within a year’s timeframe in all the four provinces, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan. These initiatives will be funded through Chinese grant money attained under the socioeconomic cooperation framework.
The Chinese government will provide a grant of up to USD 1 billion for socioeconomic development and poverty reduction projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) agreement.
The socioeconomic development and poverty reduction initiatives were earlier part of the CPEC long-term plan.
The expert group is led by Du Zhenli. The team has been in Pakistan since Feb 26 to explore possible avenues of assistance.
It held a wrap-up session at the Planning Commission on Thursday. The two sides agreed to select 20-23 projects in the first phase. These will be implemented in the first year. The meeting decided to prioritise interventions in places where infrastructure is already present.
