One Belt One Road Initiative
The investment dynamics and resulting benefits that are encompassed in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project can be termed as nothing short of economic revolution for the entire region. In that context, the CPEC Think and Grow Summit was held at Pakistan Industrial Technical Assistance Centre (PITAC), Lahore on 31st March 2018. The conference featured dignitaries from People’s Republic of China, who partook under the spirit of promoting the ideals of mutual cooperation between Pakistan and China through identifying the opportunities for future.
CPEC was coined as the economic game changer for Pakistan both by the government officials present at the event as well as the honorable speakers from both countries that highlighted the benefits and areas of cooperation in comprehensive detail at the technical session. High profile dignitaries from both countries were present to grace the event in order to understand the far-reaching impact with development of CPEC related projects in the future.
The guests featured Honorable Professor Ahsan Iqbal, Federal Minister for Interior, Planning, Development and Reforms, as the Chief Guest for the Summit and also included Dr. Cui Yong, Vice Dean and Deputy Secretary General of Belt and Road Initiative, Jiangsu University, China as the head of delegation from our neighboring country amongst others from both sides. And Dr. Hassnain Javed Federal Advisor & Master Trainer at Pakistan Industrial and Techniacal Assistance Center. The report signifies the event flow and the details of CPEC related way forward as identified by the participants and guests at the Summit. This Summit was an attempt to start the process of understanding and explaining the future potential of CPEC related projects and developments and therefore, the themes that were discussed have been covered in the report.
The Think and Grow Summit paved way for a greater understanding to the dynamics of CPEC and reassuring the participants about its value and success. Any concerns and rumors surrounding the effectiveness and future of this investment from China were also addressed and laid to rest by the honorable speakers and the Chief guest in particular. Also, the role of government and other stakeholders was clearly identified and the need to owning up to respective responsibilities was also talked about in detail. Finally, the technical knowledge sharing reassured the participants that this is a secure future and the only way forward is to grab this opportunity by both hands and work in collaboration with the Chinese. The sessions concluded with their respective award distributing ceremony, acknowledging the presence of both officials from Pakistan and Chinese side.