The Central Asian States have done their own comparison of cost of doing transportation through Gwadar Port with other regional ports and will present its working to Pakistan, official source told media. 

The National Logistic Cell, which was tasked last week to present its work, has also completed the task and will present its data to the planning ministry this week, the source said. In the previous meeting on Gwadar Port, the planning minister instructed the National Logistics Cell (NLC) to conduct a detailed cost analysis for transshipment routes. He highlighted the need for competitive pricing and viable logistics solutions to attract international trade. The minister for planning will brief Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Friday and will present the operationalization plan of Gwadar Port, the source said. 

On Tuesday, a high-level meeting to discuss the operationalisation of Gwadar Port was convened here with Federal Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal, in chair. The meeting was attended by Secretary Planning Awais Manzur Sumra, representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Communications, Maritime Affairs, Railways, and Petroleum, as well as the Gwadar Port Authority and other relevant departments. Representatives from various embassies also participated via video link. The discussions focused on devising short and medium term strategies to operationalise Gwadar Port effectively within six months. 

The federal minister emphasized the importance of comparing Gwadar’s trade costs with other regional ports, including those in Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Bishkek, and Tashkent. Highlighting Gwadar’s strategic importance, the minister noted that it serves as the shortest trade route to Xinyang, China. He urged the private sector to share detailed proposals to enhance trade through the port, assuring full government support in providing relevant data.