ISLAMABAD: China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC) Vice President Yang Jinjun called on Planning Secretary Zafar Hassan in his office here on Monday.
Both the sides discussed investment opportunities, offered by Special Economic Zones (SEZs) being implemented under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
It was emphasised that Chinese firms should ensure capacity building of the local manpower by providing them with on-job training and employment.
China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC) Vice President Yang Jinjun highlighted the economic development of Pakistan through ML-1 as it is one of the strategic projects which is ‘technically very feasible’. He was of the view that besides ML-1, Karachi Circular Railway project aims for the well being of the local people of Karachi.
He said his state-owned company would explore opportunities to jointly work with the federal and provincial governments to ensure speedy implementation of these important projects.
On this occasion, CRCC’s hinted to work for the establishment of SEZs, especially in Islamabad on a priority basis. High-tech SEZs in Islamabad will be more advantageous because of its prime location and rich human resource and the availability of the Research and Development (R&D) sector.
Secretary Planning assured full support of the Ministry of Planning Development and Reform for all CPEC projects. However, he said, that for any new projects, the government of Pakistan would be interested in public-private partnerships and with a more innovative approach for financially feasible projects.
He also assured that the government of Pakistan is paying serious attention to have SEZs on a fast-track basis. He stated that the ML1 project will have a number of stations which can be monetised to generate finances for the project.
The Chinese side appreciated the improved security situation in the country.
