Islamabad: The next five years of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project are projected to help Pakistan overcome its trade imbalance, a news source reported. The completion of the first five years will likely showcase solid developments. Upon the conclusion of Prime Minster (PM) Imran Khan’s first visit to China, a joint statement revealed that CPEC’s progress so far had been satisfactory for both countries.
The National Development & Reform Commission (NDRC) and Board of Investment (BOI) also signed a memorandum of understanding for industrial cooperation during the eighth CPEC Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting held recently in Beijing.
According to sources, CPEC’s next five years will not only be important for industrial revival in Pakistan, but they may actually help the country deal with its existing trade-imbalance challenges. For this purpose, Pakistan will also have to resolve certain in-house problems.
One of the most pressing problems on this front is the country’s shortage of skilled labour. Official documents show that 30,000 jobs were created under the early harvest programme of CPEC. The remaining years of the project are expected to bring in another 80,000 jobs.
Apart from establishing industrial parks in Pakistan, the industrial cooperation between the two countries also focuses on developing and implementing the initiatives that will foster increased industrialisation.
