Pakistan has entered CPEC 2.0, says PM Shehbaz eyeing deeper regional integration

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday announced the start of “CPEC 2.0,” the next phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, emphasising that it would be driven by business-to-business partnerships and expanded regional cooperation.

Addressing Regional Transport Minister Conference in the capital, the prime minister said the CPEC flagship agreement, signed by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, had opened new avenues for trade and connectivity by linking markets across South Asia, Central Asia, China, and the Middle East.

“By connecting Gwadar Port with China’s port network, we have created new routes for commerce, opportunity, and cultural exchange,” he said. He added that CPEC’s next phase would focus on strengthening collaboration with Chinese companies as well as with “brotherly countries represented here today,” to promote shared goals of peace, prosperity, and sustainable growth.

Highlighting efforts to enhance regional transport links, he mentioned initiatives such as the Trans-Afghan Railway and the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul rail corridor, which aim to revolutionise cross-border trade and improve air connectivity with Central Asian states.

The PM said Pakistan’s participation in the TIR Convention had given a “quantum boost” to regional transport projects and people-to-people linkages, bringing countries of the wider region closer than ever before.

He added that Pakistan’s prosperity depends on empowering its youth and strengthening digital connectivity across borders to fully participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He said that connectivity in today’s world goes beyond physical infrastructure,it now means building digital bridges that link economies, ideas, and opportunities globally.

He emphasised that Pakistan’s demographic reality, with nearly 60 per cent of its population between the ages of 15 and 30, is both a challenge and a powerful opportunity. “Our youth will be the harbinger of Pakistan’s prosperity,” he said, stressing that investing in digital skills, innovation, and technology-driven industries would be crucial to unlocking that potential.

PM Shehbaz added that the government is committed to fostering an environment that enables young Pakistanis to lead the country into a new era of economic growth and regional cooperation powered by knowledge and connectivity.