LAHORE: Federal Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal said on Monday that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was opening up new horizon of development to the world.
He said, "It is a matter of great pleasure that massive investments under CPEC is further strengthening Pak-China friendship, which is sweeter than honey, higher than Himalaya and deeper than Ocean."
He expressed these views in a media talk after addressing at a dinner of 3rd CAC Pakistan Summit and Expo arranged by Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) here at Lahore Expo Centre.
LCCI President Malik Tahir Javaid, Senior Vice President Khawaja Khawar Rasheed, Vice President Zeshan Khalil, Director China Council for Promotion of International Trade Isabel Dong, Chairman Pakistan Crop Protection Association (PCPA) Saad Akbar and a large number of businessmen were also present.
The federal minister said economic crisis was one of the major challenges facing the world and Pakistan was passing through crucial time of its economic history.
Ahsan Iqbal was of the view that this age was of innovation and disruption where changes took place frequently, and "we need to develop ourselves as per requirements of the world because the nature of today's challenges is global and challenges have no boundaries."
He added, "Today we need to promote trade with the international communities instead of relying on the loans for economic development."
The country's economy had collapsed in year 2013 when no one was ready to invest in Pakistan, but now it was making progress, he said and added that all economic indicators were showing positive improvements.
He mentioned that power generation had been enhanced only up to 16000MW from 1947 to 2013, the present PML-N government had so far added 7000MW capacity to the national grid, while another 3000 would soon be incorporated into the system.
Consistency in economic policies was indispensable for the progress of the country, he said while predicting that Asia would make up 50 per cent of the world economy by 2025.
He was of the view that without stability and peace, development was not possible, adding the PML-N government turned Pakistan into fast emerging economy in the world in last four years as international institutions were giving credit to Pakistan for economic reforms and progress.
Ahsan Iqbal said that Asia, South Asia, Central Asian states and China were engines of economic growth, and Pakistan was situated at the crossroad of these engines of growth. In this context, he said, that Pakistan would have to get optimum benefit of its geographical location for which political stability and peace was of immense importance.
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