The gate of Gwadar Free Zone (File photo)

Islamabad (People's Daily) - The inauguration ceremony of the Gwadar Free Zone and Gwadar Expo 2018 kicked off on Monday, with Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, ambassadors and businessmen attending the ceremony.

The Expo aims to boost economic activities between Pakistan and China. It will provide a platform for interaction between local and foreign business, financiers, investors and government officials to utilize the benefits of this mega project for enhanced investment, business and employment opportunities.

The event also highlights the success of companies already working on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects, and provide information about opportunities for industrial cooperation between Chinese and Pakistani businessmen.

The Gwadar Port Authority and China Overseas Ports Holding Company (COPHC) are jointly organizing the Expo.

COPHC chairman Zhang Baozhong said on Sunday that Gwadar would become a big commercial hub in the region with the construction of the Free Zone.

Gwadar Port (Photo: courtesy of COPHC)

The development of Gwadar would help improve the overall economic conditions of the country and also of the local people, and for the construction of the Gwadar Free Zone.

China has employed around 2,000 local people, Zhang noted.

He also emphasized that the project would prove to be a win-win cooperation between Pakistan and China.

Gwadar Port Authority chairman Dostain Khan Jamaldini told the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) that the development in Gwadar was in accordance with the vision of establishing a “Smart Port City”.

Jamaldini said Gwadar Expo 2018 is a step toward the port city’s commercialization and industrialization.

According to the COPHC introduction, the Expo has received an enthusiastic response from Pakistan, China, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Oman, as well as business people from other countries and regions.

The originally planned 100 booths have been increased to more than 150, and over 2,000 exhibitors have applied for the exhibition.