The China Pakistan Economic Corridor is a framework of regional connectivity; a way for both countries to grow together economically, politically and socially. This will also benefit other countries such as Iran, Afghanistan, India, and others in the region. The main aim of CPEC is for trade routes to be made from China through Pakistan, to aid economic growth in different sectors and provide regional connectivity throughout the country as well. These aims seem to be very beneficial for both sides, though in different ways.
For China, CPEC provides a chance to expand its trade routes and reach a wider sphere of people around the world in a more efficient way. As for Pakistan, CPEC is foreshadowed to be one of the biggest steps it will take as a country. This project will provide a lot for Pakistan. The biggest benefit of this for the nation is economic growth. This route gives Pakistan the power to trade and facilitate trade with more countries by providing accessible routes that make it easier to transport goods that need to be moved. In this way, Pakistan can make a high profit and its GDP is estimated to reach 14pc, as foreshadowed by the World Bank, if the work is done right.
Another major benefit of this to Pakistan would be political leverage. With such a huge project under its control, Pakistan can make better political relations with other countries in the region which might be interested in using the routes for their own trade as well. This will lead to better bilateral relations with countries such as Iran and Afghanistan.
In addition to that, it provides regional connectivity throughout the region, giving better access to places that might otherwise be very far away, such as Gwadar, Pasni, etc. It’s also helping in the rapid development and growth of such areas that helps the people of Pakistan.
CPEC also foreshadows an immense increase in social welfare for the people of Pakistan. Work is underway for the development of new educational institutes, especially in rural areas where the literacy rate is low, to promote education all over the country, and increase the literacy rate. The ratio of Pakistani students in Chinese educational institutes would also increase, providing better quality of education to the youth.
The health sector would also benefit from this venture, as there will be more hospitals and health facilities built for the people of Pakistan. Additionally, such a close association with China would provide better machinery products for the health sector of Pakistan. With all that said, it wouldn’t be wrong to evaluate that CPEC is highly beneficial for Pakistan.
However, despite its benefits, there have been concerns put forward regarding CPEC as well. The biggest of these is a fear of alienation from the west, which already seems to be happening. With this venture, Pakistan declared open and unprecedented support for China. By doing so, it is feared that it might lead the countries that do not agree with China’s politics and ways to be less inclined to work with Pakistan, thus affecting the bilateral relations with such countries.
Another concern regarding this venture is that it’s a debt trap. Especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, this notion is becoming more and more feared. Pakistan has taken loans from China to work in the development of the CPEC projects and it seems like China might use this to it’s advantage by increasing the interest on them, leading to Pakistan accumulating a huge loss. However, these claims have been widely refuted by the people in positions of power and it has been assured that Pakistan is capable of sustaining the financing burden of CPEC.
There is also a concern about the environmental impacts of CPEC. It is widely claimed that CPEC is disregarding the climate crisis, using fossil fuel such as coal and gas for a lot of its energy supply without giving back to the Earth. This is a significant hurdle in the work as the climate crisis is very important and needs to be taken seriously before the consequences are irreversible. The government has assured the people that this is being taken into account but the amount of truth in this statement remains to be seen.
All in all, CPEC is a project that appears to be highly advantageous for Pakistan and China, whether that be in terms of economic development, improvement in bilateral relations or social growth. However, there are concerns regarding this venture as well and despite the rebuttals by the authorities, the truth in these statements remains to be
