HANGZHOU: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met Wang Hao, Party Secretary of CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee, in Hangzhou on Saturday and discussed matters related to bilateral cooperation. Wang Hao welcomed the prime minister to Zhejiang Province.
The prime minister appreciated the remarkable development achievements of Zhejiang Province and praised the visionary leadership of President Xi Jinping during his tenure as Party Secretary of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee, particularly the concept that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets”.
He said Zhejiang’s development offered an important example of how ecological conservation, green development and high-quality economic growth could advance in a mutually reinforcing manner. The prime minister said Pakistan attached high importance to strengthening cooperation with Zhejiang Province, particularly in the fields of digital economy, e-commerce, information technology, telecommunications, agriculture, renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and skills development.
He noted that provincial cooperation constituted an important pillar of Pakistan-China relations and could play a significant role in advancing CPEC Phase II through industrial cooperation, agricultural modernisation, technology collaboration and export-oriented development.
The prime minister witnessed the signing of two cooperation documents.
The first was a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the establishment of a sister-province relationship between Zhejiang Province and Punjab Province. The MoU aims to promote cooperation in trade, investment, agriculture, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges.
The prime minister also witnessed the signing of a Document of Understanding between Hangzhou Normal University and the Embassy of Pakistan in Beijing for the establishment of China-Pakistan Joint Technology Research Centre at the university. The centre will promote academic cooperation, applied research, technology exchange and institutional linkages between Pakistan and China.
He said that as Pakistan and China commemorate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries were entering a new phase of practical, people-centric and development-oriented cooperation.
Earlier, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Hangzhou on the first phase of his four-day official visit to China. Upon his arrival at Xiaoshan International Airport in Hangzhou, the prime minister was received by Vice Governor Zhejiang Province Xu Wenguang, China’s Ambassador to Pakistan Jiang Zaidong and Pakistan’s Ambassador to China Khalil Hashmi, the PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar, Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, Minister for IT Shaza Fatima Khawaja and Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi are accompanying the prime minister during the visit.
During his stay in Hangzhou, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will meet Zhejiang Party Secretary Wang Hao. He will also attend a business forum aimed at promoting cooperation between Pakistani and Chinese companies under Phase-II of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, besides witnessing an exchange of agreements and memorandums of understanding. The prime minister is also scheduled to meet chief executive officers of leading Chinese companies. He will visit the headquarters of Alibaba Group and attend a ceremony for the signing of memoranda of understanding on cooperation.
