China's progress has lessons for Pakistan

Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan praised China's rapid development in his maiden speech after winning the election held on July 25, 2018. He said he wanted to learn two things from China. One was Chinese experience of eradicating poverty. China pulled around 700 million people from poverty within past four decades. It is an unprecedented achievement in the history of humankind. Second thing Khan wants to learn is China's success on controlling corruption. He admired the Chinese approach to fighting corruption that does not differentiate between tiger or fly. Nobody is above law, whether it's high-profile official or common citizen both are treated equal in front of law.

He has specifically constituted "China Unit" headed by one of his close aid Shahzad Waseem, who directly reports to him. The unit is powerful and in a position to take all necessary actions. The unit is to deal with all affairs related to China, including China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

He is scheduled to visit China early November on his first visit after taking charge of his office. However, he visited China in 2011 as chairman of his political party.

Khan has said at a high-level meeting that strengthening the all-weather China-Pakistan strategic cooperative and all-dimension partnership is the cornerstone of Pakistan’s foreign policy. He emphasized early implementation of CPEC projects would help realize the true potential of China-Pakistan economic relations. He believes that CPEC is beneficial not only for the two countries but for the entire region.

Khan said that CPEC is a great opportunity to learn from the Chinese experience, especially in social sector, agriculture and other areas. He said that the agricultural output of the country, considered as the backbone of economy, can be enhanced manifold by learning from Chinese expertise and employing latest technologies and efficient methods. Pakistan's agriculture possesses a huge potential and should be exploited properly.

He emphasized on the need to more focus on early establishment of special economic zones in various parts of the country which would help the local industry to grow through industrialization and would also create huge employment opportunities for the youth. Pakistan's population comprises 70 percent youth under the age of 40. We should fully utilize out this strength in the nation's socio-economic development.

Khan said the flagship China-Pakistan Economic Corridor under the Belt and Road Initiative of President Xi Jinping offered opportunities to other countries to invest in CPEC projects and reap benefits in various sectors. It is expected that Saudi Arabia, UAE, Turkey, Kuwait and many other friendly countries may also invest in Pakistan.

Our future lies with BRI and we must follow the Chinese approach of "win-win" and "globalization". Pakistan is also an open-minded nation and wants to promote "peace, harmony and development" globally. Pakistan opens its doors to all nations, whoever wants our partner in peace, stability and prosperity.

Author: Prof. Zamir Ahmed Awan, Sinologist (ex-Diplomate), Non-Resident Fellow of CCG (Center for China and Globalization), National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan.