Lahore: Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has called for greater attention towards tackling climate change and poverty, as Pakistan and China enter the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a news source reported. He expressed these remarks during his keynote speech while he attended the opening ceremony of the Belt & Road Forum in Beijing.
The PM stated that CPEC is one the major components of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). He added that it has made significant progress, helping to massively increase Pakistan’s energy supplies, closing infrastructure gaps, and transforming Gwadar.
PM Imran proceeded to say that both countries are entering the next phase of CPEC, which will focus more on socioeconomic uplift. He added that this phase will be supplemented through the signing of an expanded Pakistan-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
In reference to BRI, he said that world leaders should focus their effort on the people of their respective countries by resolving hurdles in the way of sustainable growth. He suggested that the countries should collaborate on the following five points:
Establishing a BRI tourism corridor
Launching a dedicated tree-planting project for tackling adverse effects of climate change
Formation of an office for anti-corruption cooperation
Trade liberalisation and boosting private sector investment
Establishing a poverty alleviation fund
PM Imran is currently on a four-day visit official visit to China.
