Chinese team coming to finalise sites for CPEC-related projects

islamabad — A team of Chinese socio-economic development experts would visit Pakistan in the last week of the current month to finalise projects and their sites under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), including health, education, water supply, vocational training, poverty alleviation and agriculture.

In a statement, a ministry of planning, development and reform spokesman also clarified a news item published in a section of the Press regarding delays in implementation of CPEC-related projects, saying none of the CPEC projects was facing delay; rather Pakistan and China have agreed on the future trajectory of CPEC and timely completion of on-going projects.

He said the 8th joint cooperation committee meeting laid foundations for the expansion of CPEC to new heights, adding that joint efforts were underway on socioeconomic development and accelerating cooperation in industrial and agriculture sectors.

A memorandum of understanding on the formation of a joint working group on socioeconomic development and a memorandum on poverty reduc-

tion had been signed during Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to China in November last year, the spokesman added.

Recognising the significance of Gwadar as an important node in the cross-regional connectivity, he said that Pakistan and China have

agreed to speed up the progress on port and its auxiliary projects.

The ground-breaking of Gwadar airport, a vocational institute and a hospital will be performed in the first quarter of this year. A master plan for Gwadar is in the final stages of formulation. —