Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms, Ahsan Iqbal on today said future of Asian countries depends on promotion of trade and commerce and connectivity through transport corridors.
Transport corridors help connect the countries and play pivotal role in economic integration, trade development and regional connectivity across the globe.
At a launching ceremony of a report – Wider Economic Benefits of Transport Corridors in South Asia – he said by adopting regional cooperation and connectivity approach, billion of people could harness benefits by investing in health, education and infrastructure development.
The report was jointly launched by World Bank Group, Asian Development Bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and UKAID, aimed at presenting past and recent case studies of corridor initiatives and make an assessment of corridor investment supported by international development organizations.
Ahsan Iqbal said Pakistan is located among three engines of growth where as Central Asia was comprising over 3 billion population and the country has opportunity to link with them.
The regional cooperation are opening new opportunities for growth and progress, he said.
The Minister said South Asia was the least integrated region in world, adding that due to least integration, the regional countries including India, Bangladesh and Pakistan were ranked among list of least developed countries in terms of social indicators.
He stressed the need for developing more markets to create demand for growth and said it was only possible through enhanced cooperation and connectivity among regions as well as with other markets of world.
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was a step for regional cooperation and connectivity, he said and added it was creating a new supply chain market and shared prosperity across all parts of the country by enhancing market access of all stakeholders.
The Minister said other aim of these corridors was to reduce distance among different economies, besides increasing connectivity and opening better return opportunities for socio-economic development.
Ahsan Iqbal reaffirmed that CPEC was not only an economic integration project of region but would open ways for market access to Central Asian States and through Central Asia to other parts of world.
Later, talking to media, he said CPEC was a purely a economic development project that would bring prosperity. He called upon the India to get benefit from the project rather pursuing un-necessary criticism.
Besides CPEC project, Pakistan was also making progress on other corridors in order to enhance its connectivity through Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC), he added.
