Gwadar (Agencies): Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Information and Broadcasting, Lieutenant General (retired) Asim Saleem Bajwa has said that the first bulk cargo ship has reached the port city of Gwadar this week.
The cargo ship "MV Manet" is carrying wheat and urea as part of the Afghan Transit Trade, he said.
In a tweet on Saturday, Asim Saleem Bajwa, who is also Chairman of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor Authority (CPECA), said that a dream come true for local economy as it will stimulate host of business activity.
First bulk-cargo ship “MV Manet” carrying wheat n urea of Afghan Transit trade reached Gwadar this week-a dream come true for local economy as it will stimulate host of business activity... #cpec #CPECMakingProgress pic.twitter.com/Imi9T4fbt2
— Asim Saleem Bajwa (@AsimSBajwa) May 30, 2020
The cargo containers would be transported by road to Afghanistan.
The war-torn country has relied on Pakistani land routes and the two ports of Karachi and Port Qasim for international trade after a bilateral agreement, known as the Afghan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA), was signed with Islamabad.
First cargo ship carrying containers for Afghan transit trade had arrived at Gwadar in January this year.
The port is a center part of the mega project of CPEC being executed with assistance of China to improve connectivity between the two countries in particular and with the whole region in general.
CPEC is a multi billion project of around $60 billion which includes various projects such as construction of road and railway infrastructure, electricity projects, airports, special economic zones, agriculture, and the projects for socio-economic development of the local communities.
