ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will inaugurate a much ambitious multi-billion-rupees Dhabeji Industrial Zone (DIZ) project in Thatta in the second week of July which is believed to be one of the main sources of local and foreign investment and stabilising the crippling economy.

One of the important aspects of the project, which was a part of the China-Pakistan Economic Zone (CPEC), is that it has been given the status of a special economic zone by the Board of Investment (BoI) on June 22.

Spread on 1,550 acres, DIZ will be developed in two phases in which hundreds of industrial units will be accommodated. The project is being executed through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode as the Sindh government has provided land to the contractor/developer Zahid Khan & Brothers (ZKB) while the contractor will not only develop the zone but will pay the cost of the land to the provincial government.

“All utility services have been provided in the zone — electricity, gas and water,” said CEO of ZKB Engineer Muhammad Wasim while talking to Dawn.

He said a water pumping station has been established at Dhabeji under which 10 million gallons of water per day will be supplied to the zone.

He said some Chinese investors have also expressed eagerness to lay their industries in the zone, which gives easy access to Port Qasim, CPEC Route and N-5 Motorway. “It is also expected that Chinese giant entrepreneurs will re-locate their industries in the DIZ which will become a hub of economic activities in Sindh due to its ideal location close to two functional ports of the country—Karachi Port and Bin Qasim Port,” he added.

He said DIZ was expected to fetch a $5 billion investment besides creating more than 200,000 jobs.

Mr Wasim said the zone was being developed as per international standards. “Around 1,000 acres have been allocated for industrial units while the rest for amenity plots like schools, hospitals, parks, and green areas,” he added.

Sindh Economic Zones Management Company (SEZMC) chief executive Abdul Azeem Uuqaily said the project was proposed to be implemented in two phases of 750 acres and 780 acres each.

Currently, four SEZs are being developed in the country. Of which three are near completion while DIZ was hit by controversies and litigation as a result it was delayed by five years.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2023