CPEC to further enhance development of Pakistan: minister

ISLAMABAD, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- The completion of a number of projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would further enhance the development of Pakistan and beyond, caretaker Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Muhammad Sami Saeed has said.

Pakistan's government would step up the momentum of all development initiatives in the South Asian country, with the CPEC being accorded the utmost precedence, the minister said while chairing a review meeting on CPEC projects on Tuesday.

Highlighting the transformative potential of the CPEC, Saeed said that the development projects under the CPEC have been bringing socio-economic benefits to Pakistan.

The minister also emphasized maintaining the current pace of progress, urging all the concerned departments and ministries to work in close coordination so that the development process would continue.

"Effective oversight mechanisms should be embedded within the implementation process in CPEC projects to harness its full potential and optimal utilization of resources," he said.

Launched in 2013, the CPEC, a flagship project of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is a corridor linking the Gwadar port in southwestern Pakistan with Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which highlights energy, transport and industrial cooperation.