By Jawad Ahmed ISLAMABAD, Feb. 11(INP-WealthPK): Pakistan's geo-strategic location puts it in a position to establish significant economic ties with China, India, Iran, and the Central Asian countries via economic corridors and well-developed road networks. Modernising road infrastructure is one of the primary goals of the government's Vision 2025. In this regard, major international organisations such as the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the World Bank, and the Central Asian Regional Economic Corporation (CAREC) provide support, loans, and grants to modernise and rehabilitate Pakistan's transportation infrastructure. These organisations are actively assisting the government in developing transportation policy and strengthening the transport industry. The CAREC is an organisation of 11 states that aspires to aid in the development of better regional road connectivity, particularly in providing easy access to landlocked countries. Pakistan provides a gateway to warm waters for Central Asian countries through Gwadar and Karachi ports. The CAREC Strategy (CTS) 2030 is to modernise and upgrade the transportation network of member countries with an objective to spur cross-border trade and economic growth. On December 22, 2021, the ADB and Economic Affairs Division signed an agreement of $235 million for maintenance and dualisation of Indus Highway section N-55 as part of the CAREC corridor development investment program. The investment will be used to upgrade a 222-kilometer two-lane national highway between Shikarpur and Rajanpur to a four-lane carriageway. The N55 connects the ports of Karachi and Gwadar with Pakistan's economic zone in the north. The N-55 Highway is an important road route in Pakistan that traverses along the Indus River, linking Karachi Port with Peshawar via Dera Ghazi Khan. The upgradation will increase the capacity of a key highway portion that passes through the economic hubs of Punjab and Sindh provinces. According to Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Omar Ayub Khan, Indus Highway provides another international corridor linking China, Afghanistan and their neighbouring Central Asian countries to the Arabian Sea. He said in a statement that the dualization of N-55 will not only boost local economic activities but also promote intra- and inter-regional trade and movement of people by improved connectivity and reduced travel time. It will be the second tranche of a funding arrangement aimed to give technical and financial support to modernise N-55 and strengthen capability of the National Highway Authority (NHA). Previously, in 2017, a $180 million first tranche was approved to fund the restoration of three sections totalling 143km in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. Pakistan is also improving its national road corridors by its own funding. In order to increase road capacity and to absorb the excessive traffic build up on Karachi to Torkham National Highway (N-5), plans are in the works to rebuild and dualize 67 kilometres of the Indus Highway (N-55) from Kohat to Karak districts of KP, which will be funded entirely by government funds. The CAREC is also assisting in the enhancement of border services projects and facilitating at Torkham, Chaman, and Wagha. Torkham and Chaman are the busiest trade transit routes for the Central Asian countries, as these handle 84 percent and 16 percent of Afghan transit trade, respectively. Furthermore, China Pakistan Economic Corridor will also open avenues for regional trade cooperation which will result in modernised and well-developed road infrastructure. These massive road network investment projects will satisfy the future requirements for a modernised and regionally well-connected road network.