Islamabad, on Thursday, facilitated two major sessions to increase overseas investment and upsurge city development. Some of these discussions entailed a Chinese delegation and members of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) majoring in projects to be carried out in the city in the future.
During the first session, Muhammad Ali Randhawa, the chairman heading the Capital Development Authority (CDA) of Islamabad, firmed up the deal with the invited Chinese–Pakistan delegation. Some of the officials from CDA also joined the meeting whereas the topic of discussion was associated with investment prospects in Islamabad.
Chinese side showed keen interest in several projects including the ones occurring in the present and future work schedule which included the conversion of CDA office buildings to solar energy. Randhawa offered their affirmative sentiment on their interest while highlighting that CDA is participating in achieving the vision of the Islamabad government to lure foreign investors, including the Chinese, to assist in the process of Islamabad’s development.
He promised the delegation that he would consider the proposals on solar energy his deputies came with and that soon a feasibility study would be initiated. They also discussed other prospective plans such as Silicon Valley and Four Tier Data Center and Randhawa endorsed China’s active participation in investing and developing in Pakistan.
In the afternoon, Randhawa presided over another meeting that happened in CDA headquarters with the ADB’s mission through Zoom with the attendance of other senior officers in CDA.
An ADB consultant gave a briefing on the plan to construct cycle tracks in Islamabad in the meeting. The ultimate goal of this project is to design a leisure structure and, at the same time, a solution to the existing public transportation problems for the inhabitants of the area.
Thus, Randhawa called for these bicycle tracks to be linked to the existing Metro bus routes and electric bus stations in order to make them easily accessible. He also stressed that the project must adhere to international standards but at the same time, be economical.
Moreover, in the construction process, Randhawa emphasized that the preservation of the environment and green areas should be given importance and called for consultation with professionals in this field to ensure that the project is environment-friendly.