In the last two decades, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has been one of the most affected parts of Pakistan from terrorism and extremism as well as economic problems and social changes.

It is also important to mention that Pakistan history’s most deadly and dangerous terrorist group, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), was not only born in the province in 2007 and most of its thousands of fighters and terrorists belonged to the province but most of its thousands of terrorists attacks have also been made in the region nearly destroying the whole province, its traditionally stable but violent society and above all its economy and people livelihoods. Terrorism in KP has been the result of social changes in the province, as well as due to state policies of Pakistan, particularly regarding Afghanistan. Whereas, terrorism has also been the cause of further anti-social changes in the province. There have been different plans on the table of Pakistani decision-makers and the international community for development of KP, particularly its tribal districts straddling thousands of long Pakistani international borders with Afghanistan. However, no plan or strategy has worked so far. The solution to address the massive social and economic problems of KP has been to come up with colossal economic and infrastructure projects and the state has so far failed to do so.

One such project which has been in the pipeline is the Khyber Pass Economic Corridor (KPEC). Although there has been much ado about the project some time back but today we are not hearing anything about it. This is testimony to the fact that Pakistanis strategists have turned their eyes off the project. This is going to have a huge cost not only for the province but also entire Pakistan.

It must be mentioned that in October 2019 the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) had given approval to the key project, Khyber Pass Economic Corridor (KPEC), paving the way for commencement of work on it and its early completion. The KPEC has been a project of extreme economic and strategic significance for Pakistan, particularly the province and its merged tribal districts (MTDs). However, KP and its newly tribal districts could only have taken advantage of the KPEC if the project had been expeditiously and seriously pursued unlike the deliberately abandoned Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZs). The ROZs was a project by the United States government to establish industries in the terror war-affected areas of KP and erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), now referred to as MTDs, and then to give the products of these proposed industries tariff-free access to American markets. But the sluggishness and mala-fide intentions of certain members of the federal bureaucracy sealed the fate of the ROZs and deprived the region of a potential project of complete economic turnaround.

The KPEC basically has two components. The first component is Expressway Development, which includes the construction of a four-lane Peshawar-Torkham Expressway (PTEX) and associated administrative infrastructure facilities. This part also includes the laying of fiber optic cables in trenches along PTEX, land acquisition and resettlement, afforestation, and technical and independent reviews and studies for the preparation of new related projects. The second component, Development of the Khyber Pass Economic Corridor, has several subcomponents. The anchor of the Peshawar-Torkham Economic Corridor is a new expressway which will provide a reliable and safe driving environment with higher travelling speeds. The existing Peshawar-Torkham road is part of the National Highway N-5 that traverses the historic Khyber Pass. The 400-year old existing carriageway is a 6.0-meter-wide, two-lane facility with earthen shoulders. Improvements to the existing highway are constrained by heavy population settlements on either side, a railway line running adjacent to the road, and steep gradients and sharp curves that are difficult for large multi-axle commercial trucks to negotiate. Geometrics are inadequate to cater for the modern high speed heavy vehicular traffic. The proposed expressway will be built on a new alignment with much improved geometry and would be constructed as a dual highway facility with a 7.3-meter-wide carriageway on each side and 3.0-meter-wide treated shoulders. The Expressway will provide a reliable and safe driving environment with higher travelling speeds resulting in reductions in transit time and costs for regional and international trade goods using the Peshawar-Torkham corridor. The proposed expressway could be an extension of the Karachi-Lahore, Islamabad-Peshawar Trans-Pakistan Expressway System as well as part of the Peshawar-Kabul (Afghanistan) Dushanbe (Tajikistan) Motorway.

The proposed KPEC route passes through the mountainous region which is a barren land with some dotted human settlements and cultivable area. The Peshawar–Torkham area can be divided into two major geographical divisions: the rugged mountainous regions on the north and west, with one end touching the Afghan border, and the comparatively narrow strip of valleys. The proposed project starts from the end of the Peshawar Northern Bypass at the Takhta Baig Bridge from tehsil Jamrud of Khyber district and ends at the Torkham border.

The KPEC is of massive significance because it passes through the ancient and legendary Khyber Pass, which has been the main route of entrance for the traders, invaders, conquerors from Europe, Central Asia, Arabia and Afghanistan to India. Thus the route has been instrumental in cross-regional and inter-regional trade and commerce. So the KPEC potential could be understood in the context of the long-cherished dream of traders of sub-continent, Afghanistan, Central Asia of economically integrating Central Asia with South Asia and the greater Middle East and Persia. The KPEC becomes even more important having enhanced potential once CPEC routes traversing entire Pakistan reach Peshawar. It is important to note that the KPEC is not part of the CPEC and they are two different projects. The first is financed by the West-US dominated WB and the CPEC entirely by Beijing. However, it is important to note that China has been desirous of making Afghanistan part of the CPEC as noticeably the latter project is a flagship part of Beijing’s one trillion US dollar plus, Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). So as soon as the KPEC becomes functional it would give a huge boost to the CPEC and China’s BRI aiming to economically integrate the Afro-Eurasian landmass including nearly 60 countries.

The socio-economic development indicators in the KPEC catchment area are worst as illiteracy is prevalent and poverty widespread and abject. The KPEC would fundamentally change the social and economic complexion of the area by giving the inhabitants of Khyber district constant and easy connectivity to Peshawar and down-country as well as to Afghanistan and Central Asia. Given the KPEC importance and potential of economic growth of KP and Pakistan it would be a historic mistake to let go of the project and any laggardness and red-tape in this connection must not be tolerated. The funds of around $480 million for the KPEC were not only approved but also delivered by the World Bank at the earliest which leaves no hurdle in the swift implementation of the project. In this regard the third provincial government of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur must take the lead to see the KPEC is completed expeditiously.