ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Highway Authority (NHA) has awarded contracts worth over 282 billion rupees to the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) to upgrade a strategic highway vital for trade with western China and Afghanistan.
According to a report carried by Gwadar Pro, the project will dualise and rehabilitate key sections of the 790-kilometre-long National Highway 25 (N-25), an essential trade artery linking the southern port city of Karachi with the Chaman border crossing.
Official documents confirm that all sections are scheduled for completion within two years.
While not directly part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the N-25 upgrade is considered a critical component of efforts to strengthen the corridor’s western route and facilitate trans-Afghan trade.
The contracts, awarded on October 9, cover several segments, including the 278-kilometre Karachi–Khuzdar section and the 187-kilometre stretch between Kararo and Chaman.
Strategically, the N-25 connects Pakistan’s deep-sea ports with northern transport routes. The city of Khuzdar acts as a vital junction linking the N-25 with the M-8 motorway, which extends westward to Gwadar Port — the flagship of the multi-billion-dollar CPEC initiative.
The upgrades are expected to establish an integrated transport network across Balochistan province, connecting both Karachi and Gwadar ports to regional trade corridors.
The northern Kuchlak–Chaman section serves as a principal trade gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia, a role anticipated to expand as Pakistan and China explore extending CPEC into Afghanistan.
The project also aligns with the new five-year “Action Plan” announced following Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent visit to Beijing. The plan envisions transforming Gwadar Port into a major regional connectivity hub and leveraging it for enhanced trade with Afghanistan and Central Asia.
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