A visiting study team from China Study Centre with the University of Peshawar and Pakistan Friendship Association attend a briefing by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development & Management Company of Rashakai Special Economic Zone and representatives of China Road & Bridge Corporation. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

The Rashakai Special Economic Zone in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan has seen its first phase successfully completed ahead of schedule among major special economic zones planned under BRI’s flagship project CPEC, or the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Recently the zone welcomed a field study visit jointly by the Pakistan China Friendship Association and the China Study Centre with University of Peshawar headed by Director Professor and Pro-Vice-Chancellor Zahid Anwar. 

The RSEZ is divided into three phases. Javed Iqbal Khattak, CEO of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development & Management Company, said the first phase, scheduled for December 2023, has been completed ahead of time thanks to dedicated work from the teams of both countries. 

With a business friendly environment for foreign direct investment, the economic zone has predominant investment feasibility for industrial processing and manufacturing of home appliances, pharmaceuticals, home building materials, automobile and parts, as well as agriculture and horticulture

Zahid Anwar said that CPEC has brought a lot of opportunities to Pakistan. Chinese and Pakistani companies are taking a keen interest in investment in the KP zone, which has a total area of 1,000 acres with huge job opportunities of more than 250,000 for local people. 

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He Bing, project general manager of China Road & Bridge Corporation, said CRBC has been an active partner for the zone’s development both in construction and marketing. The investment plan is focused on high-tech, export-led industries that can add value to the local natural resources and food industry.

RSEZ is located on Motorway I near CPEC route, 90 km from Islamabad and 60 km from Peshawar, of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and a sister city of Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Moreover, as it is less than 40 km from Azakhel Dry Port, giving Rashakai a unique strategic advantage to serve the consumer markets of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Southwest China, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. 

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With a business friendly environment for foreign direct investment, the economic zone has predominant investment feasibility for industrial processing and manufacturing of home appliances, pharmaceuticals, home building materials, automobile and parts, as well as agriculture and horticulture.

Members of a study team from China Study Centre with the University of Peshawar and Pakistan Friendship Association pose for a group photo during their visit to the Rashakai Special Economic Zone. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

RSEZ has the potential not only to turn the area into an economic hub of the province, but also to grow into a base for Pakistan to export commodities to Afghanistan and other regional markets in Central Asia. 

China’s Assistant Foreign Minister Nong Rong during his tenure in Pakistan as ambassador said that cooperation in promoting the construction of industrial parks is an important part of the corridor toward high-quality development. 

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Modern industrial parks can effectively integrate resources, cultivate competitive industrial clusters, and increase exports, thereby helping Pakistan achieve sustainable development. 

The visiting study team of CSC and PCFA along with senior management of KPEZDMC later cut the cake as a token of courtesy and happiness joining Chinese on celebrating Spring Festival and Lantern Festival for the Chinese Lunar New Year of the Rabbit.

The writer is Secretary General of Pakistan China Friendship Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.