Gwadar Port — A reality now

THE people of Pakistan have long cherished the dream of com
plete operationalisation of strategically located deep sea port
of Gwadar and it is finally turning into reality- something which entails immense economic benefits as it has the potential to make the country a hub of trade activities in the region.
The operationalisation of Gwadar port for Afghan transit trade by all means is a positive and potentially historic development as it underlines significant role that Gwadar will play for regional economic connectivity. It is all set to expand trade relations between two neighbouring countries. In a series of tweets the other day, Adviser on Commerce Razaq Dawood shared that a ship carrying sixteen thousand metric tons of fertilisers for Afghanistan has arrived in Gwadar and now the commodity will be locally packed. Apart from fertilisers, Afghanistan will be granted permission for transit trade of sugar and wheat from Gwadar, while trucks carrying fully sealed consignments will only be allowed to go to neighbouring country. All this means that locals will now get abundance opportunities for jobs, as labourers will be required not only for packaging but also to load and offload trucks. Increased activity at the port will also open opportunities for more technical and better livelihood opportunities for our youth yet priority should only be given to locals to improve their lot and remove their sense of deprivation.
As for Afghanistan, Gwadar port provides most economical trade route. Afghan traders have up till now been using two Pakistani ports, Karachi and Port Qasim for transit trade yet Gwadar port provides an additional facility being closer to Afghanistan and gives quick clearance of their goods. In fact this is just the beginning as Gwadar port also offers great relevance to land locked Central Asian States to look beyond immediate markets. They have wonderful opportunity to realise their dreams of regional connectivity, economic diversification and sustainable growth by conducting marine trade through warm waters of Gwadar port. Our focus should also be on early opening of the special economic zones as well as launch of work on the upgradation of ML-1 as these can greatly contribute to offset the economic impact inflicted by Covid-19 breakout in Pakistan. Our country can really emerge stronger by accelerating cooperation in all sectors envisaged under the CPEC.