https://arab.news/vjxat
- The development comes days after Prime Minister Imran Khan's four-day visit to China
- PM's aide says Imran Khan listened to Chinese investors assured them of full cooperation
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani government has exempted Chinese investors from taking approval from 37 different departments before launching any project in special economic zones under the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the Pakistani state media reported on Monday, citing an adviser to the Pakistani prime minister.
The development comes days after PM Imran Khan's four-day visit to China, which was aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation and attracting foreign investment.
The prime minister held around 20 back-to-back meetings with representatives of nearly 500 Chinese firms to help bring investment to the country, the state-run APP news agency reported.
"Chinese companies have been facilitated with compliance regime and they are not required to obtain NOCs (no-objection certificates) from 37 different departments before launching any investment project in the special economic zones," PM Khan's aide on CPEC Khalid Mansoor was quoted as saying at a press briefing in Islamabad.
"The CPEC Authority provides one-window facility to the Chinese investors. If their issues still remain unresolved, then the PM House is there to address the issues."
CPEC has seen Beijing pledge over $60 billion for infrastructure projects in Pakistan, central to China’s wider Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to develop land and sea trade routes in Asia and beyond.
Mansoor said PM Khan listened to the representatives of Chinese firms and assured them of full cooperation of his government.
The prime minister highlighted investment opportunities in textile, pharmaceutical, footwear, information technology, cottage industry and agriculture sectors in Pakistan, he added.
"During the Phase-I of CPEC, out of $53 billion, investments of $25 billion were materialize whereas [those of] $28 billion were under consideration," the PM's aide was quoted as saying.
Under the Phase-2, Chinese companies would help set up a steel and metal recycling plant in Gwadar within three years, which would produce metals worth $4.5 billion for exports besides creating 40,000 jobs, according to Mansoor.
A Chinese company would be investing in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage at Karachi port, while a plant for value-added products would be set up on Lahore-Kasur Road in the textile sector. Chinese investors also wanted to invest $200 million in manufacturing of medical devices and another $2 billion in laying optical fiber.
He said both China and Pakistan had agreed to move forward with the second phase of CPEC.