China asks Pakistan to expedite establishment of Special Economic Zones

Islamabad [Pakistan], July 14 (ANI): China has notified the Pakistan Government to expedite the formation of the experts group which would decide setting up of the number and types of special economic zones (SEZs) along the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the first phase. During the last meeting of the Pak-China Joint Cooperation Committee (PCJCC) held in Beijing, setting up of nine SEZs had been prioritised. It had been decided that the two countries would set up expert groups to deliberate how to build the priority zones. Participating in the concluding session of Pakistan-China industrial dialogue on Thursday, head of the Chinese Industrial Experts Group, Li Yuan, asked Pakistan to expedite forming the experts' group, and emphasised on devising long-term cooperation mechanism to select priority sector and synergise policies for SEZs, reports the Dawn. Yuan informed the Pakistani side that China has already built four special economic zones followed by developing 14 coastal cities, and subsequently, 14 industrial zones were developed. The proposed prioritised SEZs by Pakistan are to be reviewed by expert groups of the two countries for development in the initial phase, he said, adding that these SEZs may follow either Chinese or Pakistani standards to attract investment. (ANI)