Federal Minister for Planning Development & Special Initiatives Prof Ahsan Iqbal Thursday directed all ministries and divisions to finalize proposals for development projects for an upcoming Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) to be held in July.
The minister gave these directions while chairing a meeting to review the progress of CPEC projects. During the meeting, the minister was apprised of the progress of CPEC projects particularly after the 11th JCC meeting held in October 2022 and the recent visit of the minister to China.
The planning minister directed the concerned stakeholders to hold meetings of JWGs on a regular basis so that projects can be completed timely. He also directed the ministries to finalize proposals with a concrete agenda for the upcoming JCC in which both countries will rejoice the 10 years celebration of CPEC.
Each ministry should prepare a report on its project that has economic and social benefits for Pakistan, said the minister, while reiterating that the decade of CPEC should be celebrated very well while rejecting the negative propaganda against CPEC.
The planning minister also directed the relevant ministry to expedite work on Special Economic Zones SEZs in order to gain a piece of the Chinese industry’s relocation to Pakistan with low-cost production.
The meeting was attended by the Secretary Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives, Chief Economist, PD CPEC, representatives of the various ministries and divisions, officials of the Pakistan embassy in China, officials of the Chinese embassy in Pakistan, and other stakeholders.
