Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Actions Ahsan Iqbal has said that artificial crisis in Pakistan was created by the state pillars, the country’s political crisis was sometimes created by the establishment and sometimes by the judiciary.
Addressing the ceremony of Takbir Day at the Islamabad High Court Bar, he said that in Pakistan, the judiciary began to be involved in politics from 2017. This was the cause of the 26th constitutional amendment.
Ahsan Iqbal said that the Supreme Court made decisions that had to be corrected by the Supreme Court, the crisis in Pakistan was artificial which was created by a single pillar of the state.
He said that the country’s political crisis was sometimes created by the establishment and sometimes by the judiciary. Today, everyone agrees that they will lead the country to stability.
The Federal Minister said that the DGISPR has said that he keeps himself separate from politics, the shoulder of the judiciary should not be used for any political war.
‘Pakistan is determined to become a key commercial and logistics center’
Addressing the Fifth CAREC Institute Annual Research Conference held at a local hotel in Islamabad, he said that Pakistan is a key to Central and South Asia for the sustainable development, regional links, digital trade and green energy under the vision of “Fatan Pakistan” vision.
The theme of the conference was “Carik Connectivity: Promotion of Trade and Trade Facility”, which included the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Carik Institute, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (Padd), and high -level representatives, experts, experts, academics, experts and experts.
Ahsan Iqbal said that today’s era is “regional realism”, where the world faces challenges like climate change, geographical political tensions, and revolution in technology.
In such a situation, the Central Asian regional economic cooperation countries will have to promote their bilateral trade and cooperation. The Federal Minister noted that bilateral trade between the Caracked Countries (other than China) is only 7 %, while in ASEAN countries the rate is more than 22 %.
He said that this deficiency is not due to geography, but due to lack of institutional harmony, poor logistics, and non -integrated regulations.
Referring to renowned economist Paul Collier, he said that flying Pakistan is a new vision of development.
He highlighted the five pillars of “flying Pakistan”, which includes exports, development engines, equality and empowerment, the participation of all sections, advance towards E-Pakistan, the digital revolution, the environment, food, water and weather protection and energy and infrastructure and industrial development.
He said that Pakistan’s IT exports have exceeded $ 3.5 billion and is increasing at a rate of 20 % annually, while 2.2 million youths have been trained in digital skills.
Referring to the Pakistan Single Window, the Federal Minister said that the customs clearance time has been reduced from eight days to 48 hours, and now it is being linked to Central Asian transit to promote digital trade throughout the region.
Under the TIR Convention, Pakistan has made international transport of hundreds of trucks between China, Central Asia and the Middle East, which has reduced the cost by 30 % and 50 % in time.
He made it clear that China-Pakistan economic transit is a regional asset, through which more than 3,000 km of roads have been constructed, 11 GW of electricity has been added, and Gwadar port is being built a regional gateway.
He said that the second phase of the C -pack was based on industrial cooperation and special economic zones, in which the Carik countries were invited to join Pakistan’s value chains and access the global market.
The Federal Minister described energy as the “backbone” of the region’s development, saying that projects like Casa-100 are linking Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
He emphasized that the importance of the digital economy has now become as much as trade. Under Pakistan, government services are being made digital, freelancers earned more than $ 1 billion in 2024, regulatory sandbox and startup innovation is being encouraged.
He also suggested the Cork Digital Trade Corridor, which will be based on smart logistics, e-customs, and digital certifications. He said that the process of trusting in the region begins with education and public relations.
He said that the standards of education should be in harmony, the exchange of students and teachers should be promoted, the role of research in policy making should be increased.
Ahsan Iqbal called on all the partners, institutions and policy makers not to be limited to the projects, but to prefer implementation, harmony, and joint leadership.
He said that let us create a caring region that connects not only goods and services but also dreams, opportunities and future. He said that Pakistan has been fully affiliated with the Carik Vision 2030 and will continue to play a vital role in promoting economic development, sustainability, and links in the region.
