Gwadar - Pakistan

Gwadar- yesterday’s small fishing village has rapidly emerged as an international Deep Seaport City today. It is a good move by the government to declare Gwadar a Duty Free Port and free economic zone, keeping in view the significance of the region. This has not only enhanced its commercial worth manifold, but has also accelerated the pace of development to an incredible extent. By virtue of its finest location, development projects, recreational programs and government’s special attention, it will soon turn into a city that can be comparable with cities like Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai. Gwadar, the western port city of Pakistan, has already got the attention of economic planners. It has an immense strategic lure. It lies near the Straits of Hormuz, gateway to the Gulf through which 40 percent of the world’s oil passes. The port also has a great commercial attraction. It lies 1,250 miles from Xingjian, a landlocked western province and latecomer to China’s economic boom.

Pakistan identified Gwadar as a port site in 1964. However, it was only in 2001 that significant steps were taken toward making this proposal a reality, when China agreed to participate in the construction and development of the deep seaport. The development of Gwadar could bring economic gains in a backward Balochistan. The infrastructural development of the province could make it an attractive investment opportunity. Meanwhile, land prices around Gwadar are said to be shooting up.

Geopolitical importance:

The Gwadar deep-sea port emerges as a place of great strategic value, enhancing Pakistan's importance in the whole region, extending from the Persian Gulf through the Indian Ocean to Southeast Asia and the Far East.

Gwadar is located on the southwestern coast of Pakistan, close to the important Straits of Hormuz, through which more than 13 million bpd of oil passes. It is strategically located between three increasingly important regions of the world: the oil-rich Middle East, heavily populated South Asia and the economically emerging and resource-rich Central Asia.

The construction of the Gwadar deep-sea port is just one component of a larger development plan which includes building a network of roads connecting Gwadar with the rest of Pakistan, such as the 650 km Coastal Highway to Karachi and the Gwadar-Turbat road (188 km). This network of roads connects with China through the Indus Highway. Pakistan, China, Kazakhistan, Kyrgizstan and Uzbekistan are developing extensive road and rail links from Central Asia and the Chinese province of Xinjiang to the Arabian Sea coast.

The Pakistani Government has initiated several projects, with majority financial and technical assistance from China, to develop Gwadar's strategic location as a goods transit and trade point. The primary project is the construction of a deep-sea port at Gwadar to enable high-volume cargo movement to and from the landlocked Central Asian states. The new port will also encompass conversion facilities to allow for the movement of natural gas as a part of plans for a termination point for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan natural gas pipeline. The secondary project is a coastal highway connecting Gwadar to Karachi, whose $200 million cost will be completely financed by the Chinese. Gwadar will serve as a port of entry for oil and gas to be transported by land to the western regions of China.

The project's fate is tied to the decentralization of government in Pakistan.[10] If an agreement is brokered with the Baluch, the Pakistani military will gain a strategic depth southwest from its naval base in Karachi that has long been vulnerable to blockade by the Indian Navy. China is going to be the beneficiary of Gwadar's most accessible international trade routes to the Central Asian republics and Xinjiang. By extending its East-West Railway from the Chinese border city of Kashi to Peshawar in Pakistan's northwest, Beijing can receive cargo to and from Gwadar along the shortest route, from Karachi to Peshawar. The rail network could also be used to supply oil from the Persian Gulf to Xinjiang. Pakistan's internal rail network can also provide China with rail access to Iran. Rail access will however be hampered somewhat by differences in gauge: China and Iran - 1435 mm; Pakistan - 1676 mm; Central Asia - 1524 mm

Future:

Nature has put its fascinating illusion in Gwadar, so as Government of Pakistan is taking its keen interest to develop Gwadar on the International Principles to focus the eyes of Tourists. Mainly Gwadar is being settled as a tourist resort as well as free port. Gwadar is now destined to be the most important upcoming coastal town located on the inter junction of the three most strategically and economically important regions of the world that are oil rich Middle East, South Asia where one- fifth of world population lives and the Central Asian Republics endowed with mineral wealth and an educated and highly skilled and disciplined workforce.

The government on Wednesday May 20, 2009 declared Gwadar Port as Tax-Free Zone.
The decision would help improve economy, provide jobs to the people and boost developmental and trade activities.