The “green pearl” on the “yellow sand painting”! China-Pakistan cooperation has given this port a new lease of life
Freighters start sailing on regular routes to China, the Middle East and Africa; trucks stream to all parts of Pakistan along the East Bay Expressway; construction is in full swing in the Free Zone, including roads, airports, power and industrial projects… This is the Gwadar Port, the flagship project of the Ongoing China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The picture is offered by China Overseas Port Holdings Co., Ltd.
In 2015, China and Pakistan have agreed on a “1+4” cooperation structure, which takes the CPEC as the central task and focuses on the Gwadar Port, energy and transport infrastructure and industrial cooperation. Today, the Gwadar Port and the Free Zone run smoothly. Gwadar exhibition center and business center have risen up, schools and hospitals built with Chinese assistance have brought convenience to local people, and local organic agriculture has flourished due to the breeding, greenhouses and drip irrigation technology taught by Chinese experts. Driven by the Belt and Road Initiative, the Gwadar is steadily developing into a regional logistics hub and industrial base, reaping tangible benefits to the local people.
“We are amazed by the changes in the Gwadar Port”
On June 3, the opening ceremony of the Gwadar East Bay Express Road built with Chinese assistance was held, and a groundbreaking ceremony was also held for the China-assisted Pakistan Gwadar Desalination Plant and other projects. Shahbaz Sharif, the Pakistani Prime Minister, thanked China for its assistance and the hard work of Chinese builders at the ceremony. The East Bay Expressway connects the Gwadar Port area with Pakistan National Highway, unlocks the transportation thoroughfare between the Gwadar Port and Karachi, and links to the new Gwadar International Airport that under construction, all of which contributes to develop the Gwadar port into a regional transport hub.
Taking advantage of its location and policy advantages, the Gwadar Port and the free zone have developed in tandem; entrepot and processing trade have kept pace. Up to now, a multifunction terminal with three 20,000-ton berths and a rear yard area of 140,000 square meters is established in the Gwadar Port. At present, the port is fully operational, running from refurbishing port components, adding loading and unloading equipment, upgrading electricity and water systems, engineering expansion, to handling bulk cargo, containers, ro-ro cargo, liquefied petroleum gas and other types of business.
The picture is offered by China Overseas Port Holdings Co., Ltd.
Baozhong Zhang, the chairman of China Overseas Ports Holding Company, told reporters that at present, the first stage of the Gwadar Free Zone construction has finished. 46 enterprises have settled in Gwadar Port Free Zone, covering overseas warehouse, chemical fertilizer, fishery processing, metal materials, agricultural development, tourism, insurance, banking, and other fields. The investment is over RMB 3 billion and nearly 5,000 jobs were created for local residents. The second stage of the Free Zone construction was launched in last July, of which the area will be 36 times larger than that of the first one.
In the Free Zone, the Gwadar International Commodity Fair is held regularly; the business center is successfully completed; and several industrial projects in the Free Zone, such as fertilizer plant, animal vaccine plant and lubricating oil plant, are being promoted. A series of projects have attracted foreign investment to the Gwadar Port and brought new opportunities for industrialization.
The Gwadar Port is changing with each passing day as projects are completed one after another. “We are amazed by the changes in the Gwadar Port for just a few years!” said Nasir, the project director of the Gwadar Free Zone Logistics Base. In addition to promoting infrastructure construction in Pakistan, Chinese enterprises have also provided a large number of jobs, offered vocational skills training to Pakistani employees and increased the proportion of local workers.
“No longer a closed small fishing village”
In 2015, in order to improve the educational condition in Gwadar, China Foundation for Peace and Development (CFPD) decided to donate a primary school in Faqul community. The school was originally designed to accommodate 150 students, but after building up, its favorable environment and teaching condition attracted more than 400 students from surrounding areas to enroll. In June 2020, a new round of expansion in the Faqul Primary School completed, and the school can accommodate more than 1,000 students now.
The picture is offered by China Overseas Port Holdings Co., Ltd
With red tile, white walls, bright and clean windows, the Faqul School has become a landmark in the adobe-dominated Gwadar region. Due to the new department of the middle school, the Faqul Primary School was renamed the Faqul School and equipped with modern teaching facilities, such as multifunction classrooms, for the new teaching needs.
“I want to be a doctor when I grow up.” “Habiba Kedir, a student at the Faqurl School, told reporters shyly, touching her head. Mohammed Yunus, a school teacher, told reporters that the rapid development of Gwadar has brought locals clean drinking water, stable electricity and good education. “Today, the Gwadar is no longer a closed small fishing village.”
In May 2017, the China-Pakistan Boai Medical Emergency Center that assisted by China was built up in that Gwadar Port to provide medical services to local people, which has been widely praised by the public. Abdul Kader, a local doctor, has worked with four batches of members in Chinese medical team at the center. He told reporters that the arrival of the Chinese medical team has greatly improved the lack of medical services and medicines in Gwadar.
On one occasion, a Pakistani father brought his child with severe photosensitive dermatitis to the emergency room. The members of Chinese medical team found that it was caused by the lack of fresh vegetables in the local diet, which can leave permanent scars on the skin without prompt treatment. The boy recovered in a few days under the careful medication and care of the team..
Since then, Kader has taken on a new job: visiting schools and communities in Gwadar with Chinese medical team to carry on the healthy propaganda and distribute vitamin pills, which are hard to get locally. “The members of the Chinese medical team have won the gratitude and respect of the Gwadar people because of their superb medical skills and serious and responsible working attitude.” Karder said.
In addition, to overcome practical difficulties of people in Gwadar, the Chinese government donated two batches of 4,000 sets of household solar panel equipment, which met the basic electricity needs of people in Gwadar. The water shortage that has long plagued the local people will be greatly alleviated after the completion of the China-assisted Gwadar desalination Plant in Pakistan.
The picture is offered by China Overseas Port Holdings Co., Ltd.
Yasser Habib, a journalist with the Gwadar News, says that there is no shortage of opportunities in Gwadar, but people who are good at spotting them. “Over the past 10 years, Chinese enterprises have been deeply engaged in the construction and operation of the port and the Free Zone, and explored a sustainable development path for Gwadar Port with tenacity and wisdom”.
“A beautiful oasis adjacent to the Arabian Sea “
Local resident Ala Bukesh is an agricultural technician at Gwadar Green Ecological Technology Co LTD. In October 2021, the Belt and Road Initiative Tropical Arid Economic Forest Engineering and Technology Research Center was established in the Gwadar Free Zone. Under the guidance of Chinese experts, Bukesh has earnestly implemented specific plans for cash crop cultivation. Recently, the harvest time of vegetables, eggplant, tomatoes and other crops came, “I am very happy to eat the vegetables that I had grown by myself” ” Bukesh said excitedly.
Under the guidance of Chinese experts, the Juncao has already grown to more than head height in the experimental field. With the breeding and grafting technology taught by Chinese experts, the survival rate and the yield rate of local crops, such as banana, jujube and ginger, have greatly improved. Currently, Bukesh and the first 10 local agricultural technicians are receiving the training about modern farming techniques, which will be extended to more local residents in the future. “I never expected to see patches of green like this in Gwadar. It will change our living environment a lot.” Bukesh said.
The picture is offered by China Overseas Port Holdings Co., Ltd.
Abdul Rahim, deputy director of the Gwadar Development Agency’s environment department, said that currently, more than 95 percent of residents’ income depends on traditional fisheries, and the reliance on a single industry has somewhat limited local development. The Gwadar region is hot and arid, thus the development of planting industry requires high level of agricultural technology and talents. The arrival of Chinese experts has solved this problem. The Gwadar Port Authority is working with the China to promote free agricultural technology training and provide cash crop seedlings to local residents. Under the guidance of Chinese technicians, more than 100,000 square meters of new green space expanded in Gwadar.
The development of modern agriculture can not only increase the income of the local people, but also improve the vegetation coverage of Gwadar and the local environment. “In the future, Gwadar will also try to introduce agricultural products such as almonds, watermelons and wild pears to further improve the level of agricultural development in the region. Gwadar will become a beautiful oasis adjacent to the Arabian Sea.” “Rahim said hopefully.
Freighters start sailing on regular routes to China, the Middle East and Africa; trucks stream to all parts of Pakistan along the East Bay Expressway; construction is in full swing in the Free Zone, including roads, airports, power and industrial projects… This is the Gwadar Port, the flagship project of the Ongoing China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).