China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is expected to add over 2 million direct and indirect jobs to Pakistan’s economy and boost the country’s GDP growth rate to 7.5%.
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is expected to add over 2 million direct and indirect jobs to Pakistan’s economy and boost the country’s GDP growth rate to 7.5%.
Jobs & Economic Growth in Pakistan:
US-based consulting firm Deloitte and Touche estimates that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects will create some 700,000 direct jobs during the period 2015–2030 and raise its GDP growth rate to 7.5%, adding 2.5 percentage points to the country’s current GDP growth rate of 5%.
An additional 1.4 million indirect jobs will be added in supply-chain and service sectors to support the projects. An example of indirect jobs is the massive expansion in Pakistan’s cement production that will increase annual production capacity from 45 million tons to 65 million tons, according to a tweet by Bloomberg’s Faseeh Mangi. Other indirect jobs will be in sectors ranging from personal services to housing and transportation.
CPEC Benefits for Pakistan & China:
The CPEC will open doors to immense economic opportunities not only to Pakistan but will physically connect China to its markets in Asia, Europe and beyond, according to the Deloitte report.
Almost 80% of the China’s oil is currently transported from the Middle East through the Strait of Malacca to Shanghai, (distance is almost 16,000 km and takes 2-3 months). With Gwadar port in Pakistan becoming operational, the distance would reduce to less than 5,000 km. If all goes well and on schedule, of the 21 agreements on energy– including gas, coal and solar energy– 14 will be able to provide up to 10,400 megawatts (MW) of energy by March 2018. According to China Daily, these projects would provide up to 16,400 MW of energy altogether.
India’s War on CPEC:
The biggest challenge that CPEC faces today is India’s well-orchestrated effort to sabotage it. Not only are Indian leaders on record as opposing CPEC, the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his right-hand man Ajit Doval have unleashed a concerted effort to try to make it impossible.
Mr. Modi has openly expressed support for Baloch separatists and Ajit Doval has talked about Pakistan “losing Balochistan”. A serving Indian Navy commander Kulbhushan Yadav has been arrested working undercover to wage covert war in Pakistan.
RAW Money Flow:
India has opened up a big money money spigot to use its agents to destabilize Pakistan. RK Yadav, an ex intelligence official of RAW, has in a TV interview (Siyasat Ki Baat with RK Yadav video 6:00 minutes), talked about RAW agents with “suitcases and cupboards full of money”.
Ex RAW chief A.S. Dulat has said “money goes a long way” in intelligence operations.
Current National Security Advisor has talked about RAW recruiting terrorists with one-and-a-half times the money they are making from other sources.
RK Yadav has, in his book “Mission R&AW“, written about RAW money paid to late Pakistani politician Khan Abul Wali Khan in 1970s. He’s also confirmed the existence of RAW-inspired 1960s Agartala Conspiracy that recruited Shaikh Mujib ur Rehman’s Awami League to work for Indian intelligence.
More recently, London Police documents have revealed the testimony of MQM leaders Muhammad Anwar and Tariq Mir confirming that Altaf Husain received money from Indian intelligence.
Modi’s Campaign to Isolate Pakistan:
While RAW is busy funding terror in Pakistan, the Indian Prime Minister Mr. Modi has launched a diplomatic offensive to have Pakistan declared a “state sponsor of terror”. It’s intended to deflect attention from Indian Army’s brutality against innocent Kashmiris and to cover up his own proxy war of terror to sabotage CPEC in Pakistan.
Summary:
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is a game-changer for Pakistan. It will build power plants and other infrastrastructure, boost Pakistan’s GDP growth to 7.5% and add millions of new jobs to bring prosperity to Pakistan. Indian Prime Minister Modi is very unhappy about it and he has launched a multi-pronged concerted effort to sabotage CPEC by using covert wars and diplomatic offensives to hurt Pakistan. Can Pakistan defeat Indian plans and succeed in building a prosperous future? That is the big question. The answer depends on how well Pakistanis can unite to make it happen.
Related Links:
Haq’s Musings
Modi’s Covert War in Pakistan
ADB Raises Pakistan GDP Growth Forecast
Gwadar as Hong Kong West
China-Pakistan Industrial Corridor
Indian Spy Kulbhushan Yadav’s Confession
Ex Indian Spy Documents RAW Successes Against Pakistan
Saleem Safi of GeoTV on Gwadar
Pakistan FDI Soaring with Chinese Money for CPEC
This article originally appeared on the author’s blog.
