China & Pakistan’s BRI partnership At an appalling Juncture As Several Projects Fail: Report

China’s BRI and CPEC with Pakistan are on the brink of crisis as a result of poor management, debt problems, and corruption, leaving many projects unfinished.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), supported by China, is reportedly at an appalling juncture due to inadequate management, since numerous significant projects falling under its purview have either failed to begin or have generated mixed to poor outcomes. According to an ANI report, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which runs from Gwadar to the Chinese city of Kashgar in Xinjiang, gave birth to the BRI, also known as the “Silk Road,” which Chinese President Xi Jinping first mentioned in a speech in 2013.  

Further, Gwadar was referred to as “the economic future of Pakistan” by the Pakistani government when the CPEC agreements were inked; however, the CPEC and the BRI initiative are in serious trouble as a result of poor management, debt problems, and corruption that have left many projects unfinished, turning the initial optimism into extreme disappointment, ANI reported.  

In addition to this, Gwadar’s gross domestic product was projected by Pakistan and China to rise from an estimated USD 430 million in 2017 to an estimated USD 30 billion by 2050, creating 1.2 million jobs for the people which currently number 90,000. However, the initiative is currently at its lowest point and has no future. 

BRI projects in Gwadar yes to see the completion

It is pertinent to note that a new airport, the Gwadar Free Zone, a 300-megawatt coal power plant, as well as a water desalination plant, were just a few of the development projects that China proposed for Gwadar, but as of now, none of them have been finished, according to Nikkei Asia. 

In Gwadar, a 300 MW power plant was supposed to be constructed; however, the construction has not yet begun. The major obstacle to any significant growth in the area is the lack of power. According to sources cited by Nikkei Asia, there is a tiny desalination plant, but it is primarily operated for the advantage of Chinese employees. 

Given its own domestic economic difficulties and the growing opposition to the BRI in many host countries, China has grown increasingly risk conservative with regard to its BRI initiatives. As financial worries about China’s continent-spanning initiative grow, several nations are reducing or abandoning projects that are a part of the Belt and Road Initiative. 

Meanwhile, the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor would be open to any third nation joining for mutually beneficial collaboration, Pakistan and China announced on July 22.

As per a statement from the Foreign Office, the third virtual meeting of the CPEC Joint Working Group (JWG) on International Cooperation and Coordination (JWG-ICC) was co-chaired by Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood and China’s Assistant Foreign Minister Wu Jianghao. Both parties discussed the extension of CPEC to jointly agreed-upon priority sectors during the meeting.