Federal Minister for Interior, Planning, and Development & Reforms Ahsan Iqbal said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will usher prosperity and progress not only in Pakistan but the entire region.

This he said during his speech in a special event held at the Embassy of Pakistan Washington DC to highlight the significance of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), according to a message received here on Friday.

He highlighted that major infrastructure projects related to CPEC were nearing completion within the timelines. Both China and Pakistan are keen to operationalize CPEC at the earliest so that it can stimulate the economy and bring about a meaningful change in the lives of the people. There is great scope for the extension of CPEC projects to other countries.

He also said that Pakistan’s economy has registered impressive growth rate of 5.3% last year and is projected to rise to 6% in the current fiscal year. This would be further increased as the economic dividends of CPEC are realized.

Earlier, Ambassador Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry, in his opening remarks, said that CPEC was a visionary initiative of the Governments of China and Pakistan which had the potential of bringing economic benefits to both countries and the region for decades.

He said that CPEC represents the transformation of a long-standing and time-tested strategic friendship of China and Pakistan from the political to the economic sphere. The people of both countries are excited by the opportunities that CPEC would present.

Dr. Ehtisham Ahmed, a renowned economist and former senior World Bank/IMF official, while moderating the event remarked that CPEC was generating great interest around the world and implementation of this project was part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The success of CPEC would demonstrate that the Belt and Road Initiative could transform the economic future of the region, he added.

The event was widely attended by foreign policy experts and Pakistani American community members.