PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development and Management Company (KP-EZDMC) formally launched 257 acres Jalozai Economic Zone to promote industrialization and generate employment opportunities in the province.
Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Mahmood Khan inaugurated the economic zones in a ceremony held in Jalozai Economic Zone here Wednesday. Besides, Special Assistant to KP CM on Industries, Abdul Karim Khan, Advisor to KP CM on Higher Education, Khaleeq-ur-Rehman, local MNA Dr. Imran Khattak, Secretary Industries, Mohammad Javed Marwat, members Board of Directors (BoD) and a large number of industrialists and local elites attended the ceremony.
Being in the proximity of Peshawar, adjacency to UET Jalozai Campus, and new housing schemes in the locality; Jalozai offers promising potentials to the enterprising locals who either intend to expand their industrial presence or want to come up with new start-ups.
As a game-changer for the region, the 257 acres Zone will generate 50,000 direct and indirect jobs while PKR6 billion investment is expected in the Zone upon colonization; transforming the economic outlook of Jalozai.
The new economic zone will accommodate Pakistan Hunting and Sporting Arms cluster that will revive the livelihood of the skilled labour associated with it and also provide projection to the regularization of the potential market of hunting and sporting arms production in the region.
Due to the availability of labour in Jalozai, industries like Pharmaceutical, Food Processing, Construction, Marble and Granite, Food Packaging and Furniture will benefit from the investment in the zone.
The well placed Economic Zone connects to Peshawar, Islamabad through M-1 Motorway, Torkhamand Azakhel Dry Port adding to its strategic strengths. Industrial products from Jalozai EZ could find themselves in high demand areas like Afghanistan, Central Asia, China and Urban Centres in the region.
Regarding provision of all necessary utilities to the Zone, KP-EZDMC is already negotiating with the PHA authority for the supply of 5 to 10 MW power from the 132 KV grid through 11 KV feeder; that is planned for the PHA (Housing Society) near Jalozai Economic Zone. Additionally, 5 mmcfd gas is planned to be provided through an SMS that is approximately one kilometre away from the Zone. Despite high land cost in the vicinity, KP-EZMDC has kept the price of plots subsidized to promote industrialization.
Addressing the ceremony, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Mahmood Khan said that "this historic day marks the beginning of rapid industrialization in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, saying that due to its strategic location Jalozai will prove a game-changer for the region.
He said that the government plans on improving industrial output through the establishment of new economic zones, in pursuit of economic prosperity for the people of the province and the launch of Jalozai EZ is the right step forward in that regard.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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