ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top economic body on Wednesday approved its costliest project to date as part of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) agreement, giving the go-ahead for a $6.8 billion project to upgrade its railway lines, the government said.
CPEC has seen Beijing pledge over $60 billion for infrastructure projects in Pakistan, central to China’s wider Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to develop land and sea trade routes in Asia and beyond.
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved the railway project, known as Mainline-1 (ML-1), on a cost-sharing basis between Islamabad and Beijing, Pakistan’s finance division said in a statement.
Under the project, Pakistan’s existing 2,655 km railway tracks will be upgraded to allow trains to move up to 165 km per hour — twice as fast as they currently do — while the line capacity will increase from 34 to over 150 trains each way per day.
“The execution of the project shall be in three packages and in order to avoid commitment charges, the loan amount for each package will be separately contracted.”
CPEC has come in for criticism from some western countries, particularly the United States, which says that the projects under it are not sufficiently transparent and will saddle Pakistan with the burden of expensive Chinese loans.
Both China and Pakistan have continuously downplayed such concerns over the years. The move ahead on ML-1, which has been on hold for years, will dispel notions that the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan is seeking to roll back some of the mega projects that he himself had questioned when in opposition.
At $6.8 billion, the ML-1 project alone is almost equal to Pakistan’s entire development budget for fiscal year 2020-21, which stands at Rs1.32 trillion ($7.9 billion).
Pakistan approves most expensive China-aided project to date
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Pakistan approves most expensive China-aided project to date
- At $6.8 billion, the ML-1 project alone is almost equal to Pakistan’s entire development budget for fiscal year 2020-21
- Pakistan’s 2,655 km railway tracks will be upgraded to allow trains to move up to 165 km per hour, while line capacity will increase from 34 to over 150 trains each way per day
Islamabad says Pakistan Saudi Arabia Economic Cooperation Framework initiatives ‘being materialized’
Islamabad says Pakistan Saudi Arabia Economic Cooperation Framework initiatives ‘being materialized’
- Pakistan, Saudi Arabia agreed to launch framework in October to expand trade, investment ties in priority sectors
- Pakistan views Saudi Arabia as a vital regional ally that has helped it avert macroeconomic crises over the years
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson said on Thursday that certain initiatives related to the Pakistan Saudi Arabia Economic Cooperation Framework “are being materialized,” describing the economic partnership between the two countries as “solid, firmly rooted.”
Islamabad and Riyadh agreed to launch an Economic Cooperation Framework in October, as per the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), to expand bilateral trade and investment ties. This decision was taken during a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh.
Sharif’s office had said the framework will see the two countries focus on priority sectors including energy, industry, mining, information technology, tourism, agriculture and food security.
“Pakistan-Saudi economic partnership is solid, firmly rooted,” Tahir Andrabi, the foreign office spokesperson, said during a weekly news briefing. “There were certain initiatives taken during the visit of our prime minister to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and are being materialized.”
Andrabi said Pakistan’s Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) and the Board of Investment are working on “individual investments” between the two countries but did not provide any further details.
Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb departed for Riyadh on Wednesday to attend the three-day Global Development Finance Conference, where he is expected to present Islamabad’s perspective on climate adaptation and financing.
“During the conference, Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb will participate in a high-level session on climate adaptation and resilience, where he will join global leaders in discussing how developing countries can secure the capital needed to address climate vulnerabilities,” the Finance Division said in a statement on Wednesday.
Aurangzeb is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with senior Saudi officials, including leadership of the National Development Fund and the Ministry of Finance, to discuss development financing, investment opportunities and broader economic cooperation.
The finance chief will additionally meet Pakistan’s diplomatic mission in Riyadh to review ongoing economic diplomacy initiatives.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have long enjoyed close ties but have sought to broaden cooperation in recent months.
In September, the two countries signed a security agreement pledging that aggression against one would be treated as an attack on both. The move was widely viewed as formalizing longstanding military cooperation into a binding commitment aimed at bolstering joint deterrence.
The Kingdom also hosts more than 2.5 million Pakistani expatriates and serves as the largest source of remittances for Pakistan’s $407 billion economy.
