ISLAMABAD: Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Planning and Development, has said that building of Pak-China corridor and intra-regional linkages among Asia, Central Asia, Middle East and Iran will benefit about three billion people.
He stated this at a lecture delivered by the visiting China’s National Development and Reform Commission (CNDRC) Vice Chairman Zhang Xiaoqiang at Planning Commission.
The CNDRC vice chairman said that China and Pakistan would be benefited from promoting joint economic development. He hoped that both the countries would soon achieve bright future by economic collaboration as Pakistan had a great potential to grow.
Xiaoqiang informed the audience that the economic decision making and increasing economic productivity were the most important things of our collaboration. He further said that China had become the world’s second largest economy in just three decades by achieving high growth on constant basis.
Zhang Xiaoqiang said, “Taking bold economic decisions is China’s top priority irrespective of what’s going on internationally or domestically.” He said China achieved high growth, such as 9.6 per cent in 2008, 9.2 per cent in 2009, 10.4 per cent in 2010, 9.2 per cent in 2011 and 7.8 per cent in 2012. And during the period of world recession in 2008, China took correct steps, which benefited it significantly, he added.
The CNDRC vice chairman said China successfully attracted $1.5 trillion worth of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the last couple of decades and received $112 billion of FDI in just 2012. He maintained that China’s GDP went up from 0.9 per cent to 1.2 per cent.
Ahsan Iqbal said, “Pakistan has great potential but it has to travel a long way on development,” adding that the country had to use human resources, natural resources and geo-strategic endowment at the same time to make progress. In this regard, he said, Pakistan needed China’s assistance not only in terms of financial and technical parameters but also in learning successful reforms management.
