Islamabad: Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal led a review meeting of the focal groups assembled by the Prime Minister to examine recommendations from a Chinese working team. The meeting took place in Islamabad on Tuesday and included Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, Secretary Planning Awais Manzur Sumra, the Chairman of the National Highway Authority, and senior officials from multiple ministries and divisions.
According to Press Information Department, this was the third meeting chaired by Minister Ahsan Iqbal following the Prime Minister’s directives to assess the draft plans prepared by the focal groups. The Minister emphasized the necessity for action plans with timelines for implementation and stressed the importance of highlighting areas where Pakistan has already made progress. During the review of the agriculture sector, the Ministry of Food Security pointed out the absence of a long-term, comprehensive, and independent development plan for the sector. Minister Ahsan Iqbal instructed the Ministry to involve all provinces, private sector stakeholders, and form a task force to draft a national agriculture development plan titled “Green Revolution 2.0,” which should be shared with Chinese experts for their input.
The meeting also evaluated the progress on Gwadar’s connectivity. Officials reported the completion of the M-8 Gwadar-Hoshab (200 km) and Khuzdar-Rato Dero (250 km) sections, with ongoing work on the Hoshab-Awaran-Naal section. The Minister highlighted the need for economic benefits in backward areas through new connectivity, in addition to the substantial investment in infrastructure development. He emphasized the importance of transshipment activities at Gwadar Port and directed the relevant authorities to expedite the feasibility study for the second phase of the Eastbay Expressway.
Regarding the mega CPEC project ML-I, Minister Ahsan Iqbal instructed authorities to fast-track the railway project in coordination with the Chinese side, aligning with the Chinese Premier’s commitment to advancing the project. He urged Pakistan Railways to enhance its organizational capacity, citing global examples where railway departments generate revenue through commercial utilization of valuable real estate. He noted that railway land worth trillions of rupees remains underutilized and directed that an action plan be developed within 10 days for optimizing commercial benefits of this land.
Minister Iqbal also proposed a plan to utilize the skills of pensioners by offering them an extra allowance, emphasizing the need to benefit from the expertise of capable individuals who are currently receiving pensions. He instructed the establishment of a mechanism to leverage the experience of pensioners, particularly in education and health sectors. In the information technology sector, Minister Iqbal underscored the importance of emerging technologies and called for expedited efforts to promote student exchanges in IT and Artificial Intelligence (AI) with China. The meeting also reviewed ongoing efforts to ensure a consistent supply of clean drinking water and electricity to Gwadar.