Sharif’s Beijing trip: Can China-Pakistan Economic Corridor be revived?

The $62bn project, meant to resurrect Pakistan’s economy, has struggled amid attacks on Chinese workers.

Pakistan and China look ahead to "forge an upgraded CPEC" after a recent meeting between their foreign ministers. [Arshad Arbab/EPA] — Pakistan and China look to 'forge an upgraded CPEC' after a recent meeting between their foreign ministers [File: Arshad Arbab/EPA]

By rehman

Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is scheduled to fly to China on June 4 for a five-day trip that will see him engage with Beijing’s top leadership, at a time when Islamabad has come to increasingly rely on its alliance with the world’s second-largest economy.

Sharif will visit Beijing, Xi’an and Shenzhen — the southern city that China showcases as a poster child of its dramatic economic rise since the 1980s. Shenzhen was handpicked by then-leader Deng Xiaoping as the country’s first special economic zone.

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As Pakistan looks to similarly kick-start its economy from the doldrums, amid high inflation and a debt crisis, one multibillion-dollar economic project is at the heart of its ambitions:

The $62bn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), formally launched in 2015 by the two Asian nations, was pitted by the governments and many analysts in both countries as a “game-changer” for Pakistan’s economy. It included the construction of a flagship seaport, power plants and road networks across the South Asian country.

Yet nearly a decade later, questions hover over the future of the project.

The CPEC is a key component of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive network of roads, bridges and ports spread across nearly 100 countries that Beijing hopes will recreate the ancient Silk Road trade routes linking Europe and Asia.

But critics say the BRI is a vehicle for China to expand its geopolitical influence and puts poorer countries such as Pakistan under more debt.

In Pakistan, the project included the building of a seaport at Gwadar in the south, along with the development of the country’s energy, transport and industrial sectors. While there were initial successes, the CPEC had a bumpy ride in Pakistan due to the country’s frequent political, economic and security crises and has effectively come to a halt.

Why Pakistan needs CPEC

Nearly 40 percent of Pakistan’s 241 million people are below the poverty line, according to the World Bank. Inflation, which touched a devastating 40 percent a year ago, hovers around 20 percent now. An opinion poll before the national elections in February suggested that nearly 70 percent of Pakistanis believe their economic condition will continue to worsen.

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