CPEC likely to create about 575,000 direct and over one million indirect jobs in four SEZs in four provinces: SEZA chief
Lahore: Chairman Special Economic Zones Authority (SEZA) S M Naveed has said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was likely to create about 575,000 direct and over one million indirect jobs in four Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to be set up in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan provinces.
Speaking during an interactive session held at the CM Secretariat here, he maintained that the second and third phase of the CPEC would bring about an immense opportunities for Pakistani people in job and business sectors.
S M Naveed added: “We are planning to conduct short-term courses to train aspirants in respective fields adding that some Chinese companies faced problems in finding suitable people to work on energy and infrastructural projects because there was an acute lack of skilled laborers in Pakistan.”
Naveed said: “We have conducted a study to assess employment opportunities in four out of nine SEZs, including KP’s Rashakai, Sindh’s Dhabeji, Punjab’s Allama Iqbal and Balochistan’s Bostan, to find out potential jobs and industries in the SEZs, we found out that the SEZs offer employments in different fields for which the local youth should be trained before the initiation of the industrial phase.”
He stressed that with potential industries, including food processing, cooking oil, ceramics, gems and jewelry, marble, minerals, agriculture machinery, iron and steel, motorbike assembling, electrical appliances and automobile, SEZs were likely to produce 55,000 jobs for locals, and 80,000 jobs would create in industries, including food and beverages, pharmaceutical, electronics, automobile and plastic related products.
Naveed emphasized that the trained and skilled labour and engineers would not only get good jobs in the SEZs, butalso enable Chinese and local companies to find skilled professionals from local areas rather than hiring them from other parts of the country.
