Lahore (May 12, 2017): Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif on Friday left for China from Lahore to attend the ‘One Belt, One Belt’ (Obor) conference.
Talking to media before leaving for China, the chief minister said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will usher in a new era of progress and prosperity in Pakistan. He said that the mega project would change the destiny of the region in real terms.
Shahbaz said that CPEC had opened the door for investments in Pakistan.
He added that his visit would lead to enhanced cooperation between China and the provincial government. He added that the close relations between the two countries were warming with each passing day.
During his visit, the chief minister will meet investors, energy companies officials and private sector people in China.
The CM is also scheduled to hold meeting with monetary institutions officials in China.
It is to be mentioned here that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is also going to attend the One-Belt, One Road conference in China.
The One Belt, One Road (Obor) is a giant initiative of Chinese president Xi Jinpingm, which he unveiled in 2013. The initiative propose a new economic framework that would connect China’s Silk Road Economic Belt project in Central Asia with its Maritime Silk Road through connected bodies of water from the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean. In essence, these trade strategies focus on increasing China’s connection with countries along the historical Silk Road in Eurasia, while creating a new Silk Road through Asia to South Asia and Africa.
One part of the project is centred on the creation of road connections between China and Eurasia, including infrastructure projects such as highways and rail lines. The other part of the project concerns maritime routes that will connect China with South East Asia, South Asia and ports up and down the east coast of Africa.
The scale of this vision, if completed, is the project’s greatest selling point and potential challenge. The trade links outlined would cover 65 per cent of the world’s population, one-third of global GDP and a quarter of all the goods and services in the international economy.
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