The outbreak of coronavirus has halted business operations across the globe. With governments issuing lockdown orders, normal commercial activity slowed down with only essential items being traded. In such a scenario, infrastructure development and greater connectivity have been pushed behind in the policy agendas of governments all over the world. In the case of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), projects have been disrupted with local labor forced to stay at home and Chinese manpower facing travel restrictions.
It is still unclear when the regional and global economic activities return to normal which also creates uncertainty regarding the viability of these projects. Similarly, other trans-border corridors and Maritime Silk Road of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) are also faced with delays and cancellations. Despite the challenging circumstances, the Chinese are pushing BRI forward by gradually restarting development work and building the “Health Silk Road”.[1] Beijing is confident that BRI will lead global economic recovery once the crisis is resolved.
