The development of the Rashakai special economic zone (SEZ) under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the country's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province will help boost the industrial progress in Pakistan, KP Finance Minister Taimur Khan Jhagra said on Tuesday.

With the signing of the development agreement of the Rashakai SEZ, the industrial development within KP's largest industrial zone can now begin in earnest, said the official in a tweet, adding that this is a huge industrial progress in Pakistan and KP in particular.

He said the implementation of the SEZ will prove to be a game changer in economic development of the province. "Rashakai is ideally located as an export base to Afghanistan and Central Asia, in particular with the incentives on offer for other SEZs and the upcoming Peshawar-Torkham motorway," Jhagra said.

He also said that he hoped the project would create "50,000 direct and 200,000 indirect jobs."

The China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development and Management Company will jointly implement the Rashakai SEZ project.

According to the CRBC, the Rashakai SEZ project will play an exemplary and leading role in terms of the industrial cooperation between China and Pakistan, facilitating the high-quality development of CPEC.