A high-level meeting would be held today (Wednesday) to discuss the establishment of industrial zones along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, it is learnt. According to sources, additional secretaries of the four provinces and Gilgit-Baltistan would participate in the meeting. Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal would chair the meeting.
The meeting will discuss the establishment of a joint Pakistan-China Working Group to decide and identify industrial zones along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The purpose of the meeting is to take the provinces into confidence before finalising the sites for industrial zones. Four working groups on Energy, Communication Network, Gwadar Port and Infrastructure were already functional and comprised Chinese and Pakistanis.
The sources said that later the federal government would also take the political leadership into confidence and call a meeting to discuss the location of the industrial zones. They said that after the formation of the said Working Group on Industrial Zones, all the provincial governments would be asked to suggest and identify the areas feasible for establishing industrial parks in their provinces. The Planning Commission on Tuesday constituted a task force on reforms in the construction industry, which will focus on private sector led growth in the construction sector, especially with the onset of a construction boom expected in the wake of the China-Pak Economic Corridor.
This task force will comprise high-level public sector officials as well as specialists from the private sector - the committee will hold regular meetings at the Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms to discuss focal matters, long-term planning, and develop policies.
Ahsan Iqbal will head the newly-formed committee which will be taking various initiatives for the revival of construction industry. The Secretary, Planning Commission will act as the Deputy Chairman, and the task force will be working under the technical guidance of Malik Ahmad Khan, Member Infrastructure and Regional Connectivity. This development will help deal with major problems by regulating the industry and monitoring. By doing so, the growth rate of industry is expected to increase on an exponential scale, create jobs, develop human capital, improve business environment, bring stability and encourage small and medium industry.
The Vision 2025 goes hand-in-hand with the government's strategy to help the country boost its economic growth, and the formation of this task force will help streamline this strategy. "As a result we can expect improved working standards in the construction industry, which will inherently bring about stability and growth in the construction sector," sources concluded.