The Road to Recovery: CPEC and Pakistan’s Economic Future

In recent times, while #Pakistan is confronted with abysmal economic challenges, there is a great need to diversify the country’s economy to put it back on track. In this regard, #CPEC offers Pakistan a great opportunity to strengthen its #financial, #geo-economic, and #geostrategic standing and overcome this #economic mayhem.

Since early 2016, Pakistan has been projecting the #CPEC, worth US$46 billion, as the #pivot of #regional #connectivity for its #economic #progress. The Pakistani leadership of #PML-N has been quite optimistic about making the country a regional hub of transit, trade, and economic activity. However, with the political transition, the CPEC experienced a severe slowdown during the government of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf. In realistic terms, Pakistan’s trade and connectivity with its neighbors, apart from #China and #Afghanistan, has remained relatively low.

If we assess the #potential of CPEC to #uplift the deflating economy of Pakistan, CPEC, by increasing regional connectivity and setting up an affordable integrated transportation system, will lower the transportation fee for Islamabad. Moreover, the #GDP of Pakistan is expected to rise by?7.5 percent?by 2030, with an investment of more than $40bn in Pakistan’s #infrastructural, #energy, #industrial, and #agricultural sectors.

Through investment in manufacturing areas of the #economy and #development in #energy production capacity, CPEC assures an increment of nearly?two million jobs?in the labor market. The need for energy and fuel is also anticipated to increase exponentially due to rising economic activity and urbanization, leading to long-term effects on Pakistan’s energy #supplysecurity amid the country’s present energy crisis. CPEC can help cater to this need.

Pakistan’s #Maritime sector is another important avenue with enormous scope and great potential to flourish economically under the umbrella of CPEC. Presently, maritime trade has become an indispensable element of the global economy. The significance of Gwadar port has grown exponentially in the blue economy, as it has the potential to increase Pakistan’s seaborne trade significantly.?

The #Gwadar port’s completion can be a great landmark in making Pakistan a regional #trade hub. It has great potential to contribute to Pakistan’s blue assets upon becoming fully functional. With CPEC investment, #vision2030 seeks to increase the?trade-to-GDP ratio?from 30% to 60% by 2030. This will only be achievable following #FDI inflows into Pakistan via CPEC, where Gwadar is the epicenter of the development process.

Nonetheless, #CPEC has the full potential not just in making Pakistan a large consumer market by increasing its regional connectivity but also in terms of the possible upgradation of its economic structure, leading to considerable investment inflows in the country and accelerating the local economic growth via resource mobilization, thereby enabling Pakistan to make an economic turnaround.

Share your feedback in the comments below.