A virtual seminar on the topic “China-Pakistan Economic Corridor CPEC and Federalism in Pakistan” was recently organized by the CPEC Study Center at the University of Gwadar. Renowned expert on CPEC and Belt and Road Initiative Dr. Filippo Boni from the Department of Politics and International Relations at The Open University Kingdom was the speaker of the event. Registrar, University of Gwadar, Mr. Dolat Khan; Dean Faculty of Social Sciences, Dr. Jan Muhammad; and Dean of the Faculty of Sciences and Engineering, Dr. Mohib Ullah, attended the event along with the faculty members of the university. The event was moderated by Mr. Naveed Razzaq, In-charge of the CPEC Study Center at the University of Gwadar.

Dr. Filippo delved into various dimensions of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the Federalism of Pakistan, providing detailed insights into its impact on national and provincial levels. He further argued that the topic of the center-periphery debate revolving around the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has attained less scholarly attention from local and international academia. In the discussion on the western and eastern routes of CPEC, he said that it's quite astonishing that the eastern route has always been given more preference over the western one due to the limited role of provinces. He further stressed that provinces should be fully taken on board while taking decisions at the center, for which the platform of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) exerts great importance. In discussing Gwadar’s socio-economic development, he felt delighted that projects like the Pakistan-China Technical and Vocational Institute PCTVI have been completed and running effectively under the University of Gwadar.

In the end, during the question-and-answer session, Dr. Filipoo answered different questions from the participants present at the conference hall of the CPEC Study Center.