Balochistan's new airport in Pakistan urgently needs passengers

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gwadar, Pakistan - the latest and most expensive airport in Pakistan remains a mystery without passengers and flights. Full with China , it is uncertain when it is uncertain when the new international Airport Gwadar will be opened.

facts about Gwadar Airport

The airport, which was completed in October 2024, is located in the coastal town of Gwadar and is in stark contrast to the impoverished and troubled province of Balochistan, which surrounds him. In the past ten years, China has invested billions in Balochistan and Gwadar, as part of the China Pakistan Business Corridors (CPEC), which the western Xinjiang province connects to the Arab Sea.

transformative projects and their effects

While the authorities praise the CPEC as a transformation for the region, the evidence of changes in Gwadar is missing. The city is not connected to the national power grid - the electricity either comes from neighboring Iran or is generated by solar panels, and there is also a lack of clean water. An airport with a capacity of 400,000 passengers is not a priority for the 90,000 inhabitants of the city.

azeem Khalid, an expert in international relationships that specializes in relationships between Pakistan and China, expresses: "This airport is not for Pakistan or Gwadar. It is for China to enable its citizens to access Gwadar and Balochistan."

conflicts and security situation in Balochistan

The CPEC has initiated a decades of rebellion in the resource -rich and strategically important province of Balochistan. Separatists fight for their independence and are directed against both Pakistani troops and Chinese workers in the province and beyond. The ethnic Baloch minority in Pakistan claims to be discriminated against by the government and to experience disadvantages compared to other regions of the country, which the government denies.

To protect China's investments, Pakistan has expanded its military presence in Gwadar to take action against opposition. The city is characterized by control points, barbed wire, soldiers, barricades and watchtowers. Streets are closed on several days a week to ensure the safe transport of Chinese workers and Pakistani VIPs.

Life in Gwadar behind the facade

The local residents feel under increasing pressure. Khuda Bakhsh Hashim, a 76-year-old resident, remembers earlier: "Nobody used to ask where we go or what we do. We enjoyed nights in the mountains or rural areas." Today they have to prove their identity and Hashim complains about the loss of freedom and quality of life.

The water resources of Gwadares are exhausted due to drought and uncontrolled exploitation. The government states that CPEC has created around 2,000 local jobs, but remains unclear whether this means Baloch residents or other Pakistanians.

The challenges of the local population

Although Gwadar looks charming and inviting, there is a feeling that a visit could be dangerous or difficult. There is only a commercial flight connection from Gwadar to Karachi, Pakistan's largest city. Direct flights to Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, or Islamabad are not available. Activists report forced disappearance and torture, but the government denies this.

Although Hashim hopes that CPEC can offer the locals, especially the young people, this has not yet happened. He says: "If someone has enough to eat, why should they choose the wrong way?"

a delayed opening act

The security concerns delayed the opening of the international airport, as fears that the nearby mountains could serve as the target. Instead of an opening ceremony, a virtual ceremony took place between the Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang. The first flight was taboo for the media and the public

Abdul Ghafoor Hoth, the district president of the Balochistan Awami Party, criticized that not a single resident of Gwadar was employed at the airport - "not even as a security guard". In December, Hoth organized daily protest against the living conditions in Gwadar, which ended 47 days later than the authorities promised to meet the locals' demands for better access to electricity and water. Since then there has been no progress in these demands.

Without local workers, goods or services, there can be no benefits from CPEC for the people on site, says Khalid. The presence of Chinese investments also brought a strict security environment that created more barriers and deepened suspicion. "The Pakistani government is not ready to give the Baloch people something, and contradict the Baloch, to accept something from the government," concludes Khalid.