China cooperates extensively with South Asian countries

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China is cooperating extensively with South Asian countries to help build their infrastructures. Among the many projects that are underway, there are two types of infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road Initiative in South Asia.

The first type is comprehensive, and represented by the collection of infrastructure projects along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

This includes dozens of multi-billion-dollar projects, such as Gwadar Port, Qasim Power Project – which features two 660-megawatt coal power plants – and the reconstruction of the Karakoram Highway that connects the two countries.

CGTN Photo

The CPEC mainly includes road, railway, pipeline and fiber channel construction, and is an important part of the Belt and Road Initiative.

“Two areas are very important. First is cultural cooperation, particularly for marine farming cooperation. Pakistan's land near the sea is much warmer... and it’s very good for Chinese marine farming companies," said Zhang Jiadong, director of the South Asian Studies at Fudan University.

"The second important part under the CPEC framework is the industrial park program... This kind of park will provide more job opportunities for local people and business chances for Chinese companies,” Zhang added.

A bridge in Nepal built by China /CGTN Photo

Regarding the local reaction to China-Nepal bilateral ties, Zhang said: "I visited Nepal earlier this year, drove on a bridge built by China and another bridge is under construction by China. Most Nepalese are very positive about China’s role in that country. They hope for more chances and a much bigger window from China for Nepalese.”

Zhang added that China's programs are different from Western countries in that they provide mutual respect, and not interference.

Photovoltaic power station in India /CGTN Photo

Zhang believes the second challenge is how Chinese companies can find money and capital.

One example is the Colombo Port City project in Sri Lanka. The 1.4-billion-US-dollar project is the country's largest foreign direct investment in history. There's also the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge and the renovation of the Male International Airport.

“In the future, we should deal private companies a much bigger role in China’s overseas infrastructure construction and we also need more market magnates to play a leading role, so we can have a much better overseas infrastructure program in the future,” Zhang said.

Workers in Qasim Coal Fired Power Plant /CGTN Photo

The CPEC was proposed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in 2013 and initiated in 2015. The corridor starts from Kashgar in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and ends at Gwadar Port in Pakistan, with a total length of 3,000 kilometers.