The Social Dimensions of CPEC in Pakistan

Institute for Security and Development Policy | Ajay Darshan Behera

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has exacerbated regional inequality, environmental degradation, and social exclusion across Pakistan despite driving over USD 60 billion in energy and infrastructure investments since 2015. Local communities in marginalized areas like Balochistan and Gwadar face severe livelihood disruptions, forced displacement, and intense securitization that restricts civic space.

This massive bilateral initiative was originally designed to bypass geopolitical maritime choke points by connecting Xinjiang directly to the Arabian Sea. However, the top-down execution of these projects has reinforced centralized decision-making patterns within Islamabad, systematically bypassing local planning inputs. Consequently, women remain excluded from formal economic benefits while bearing disproportionate social costs, and rising militarization around key project sites continues to fuel deep domestic mistrust between provincial populations and the state. These compounding grievances threaten to undermine the long-term stability of the corridor as local resistance grows against the uneven distribution of development gains.

Comment

Beijing faces growing security costs to protect its investments in Pakistan. Local insurgent groups target Chinese nationals and infrastructure projects. This security threat forces Islamabad to deploy regular army units for asset protection. This militarisation will ultimately destabilise the entire corridor.

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