Lahore: An international conference on China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has concluded at the Government College University Lahore with very a crucial policy dialogue among the eminent academicians and intellectuals from China, United States, Belgium and Pakistan on the multibillion dollar project.
Eminent historian Prof Dr Tahir Kamran chaired the three-hour long policy dialogue in the university’s Syndicate Committee Room where the speakers stressed utmost transparency, strict monitoring and merit based appointments in the CPEC projects. They believed that CPEC was a golden opportunity, but Pakistan had to develop a favorable ecosystem to ripe super economic benefits from it.
NUST Rector General (r) Engineer Asghar Khan, eminent lawyer Anwar Kamal, XIHUA University, China Vice President Dr Li Jian, Dr. Xiaoqing Xie, Dr Hauan Delin, GCU Centre of Excellence China Studies Director Dr Khalid Manzoor Butt and other eminent paper presenters participated and policy dialogue, and outlined 14 recommendations/areas which needs the attention of the government and its policy makers along with the top-priority infrastructural development.
The academicians said the government must chalk out and implement a comprehensive plan to prepare its labor and vendor industry to absorb the CPEC related investment. They said Chinese Language should be promoted and people-to-people contacts must be enhanced as it was not only vital for cultural and social harmony, rather it would make a significant impact on economic benefits from the project.
The policy dialogue resolution also reads that in energy sector, hydro power projects must be preferred on thermal projects, and visa policy between the two countries must be relaxed to enhance people to people contact.
The speakers also said the scope of CPEC should be inclusive in relation to all domestic and regional actors which would multiply the economic benefits from the project and play a vital in strengthening ties between the South Asian and Central Asian countries. The government should give appropriate share to private sector in CPEC project.
It is also stated in the resolution that political consensus must be achieved among all the provinces in relation development projects of CPEC. Educational and research links must be established between the universities of the two countries for the development of knowledge-based economy in Pakistan. And, also think tanks must be established in the country’s educational institutions. The academicians said security and law and order situation must also be improved for the success of CPEC.
Dr Khalid Maznoor Butt, the conference chairman, said that comprehensive proceedings of the conference would be published shortly for the greater benefit of the country from the huge academic exercise in which 20 experts from China had also participated.
Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Hassan Amir Shah said that the conference played vital role in connecting GCU with the top universities of China and its academicians. He also appreciated the efforts of Dr Khalid Manzoor Butt and management committee of the conference for making the international event a success.
Prof Shah said that GCU wanted to place permanent Chinese faculty at its Center for Excellence, China Studies for which they had requested the government and Higher Education Commission for its financial support.