BEIJING: China and Pakistan have expanded cooperation under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and made notable progress in areas such as green, information technology, industrial development and health, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, Mao Ning said on Monday.
“CPEC is the flagship project for China-Pakistan cooperation. It has made tangible contributions to the social economic development in Pakistan and regional interconnectivity,” she said during her regular briefing in response to a question.
She remarked that in recent years, the two sides had expanded cooperation under the CPEC and notable progress had been made in such areas as green development, industrial development, Information Technology development and health.
Mao Ning informed that the first meeting of the joint working group on Information Technology (IT) was held.
China donated the solar equipment to Baluchistan province, and a green project in Gwadar port also made progress, she said and added, “We also made COVID containment jointly.”
The spokesperson said that the Chinese side was ready to work with Pakistan together to implement the important consensus of our two leaders and to follow through on practical cooperation to make CPEC a demonstrative project for high quality cooperation under the Belt and Road.
It may be mentioned here that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s maiden visit to China early this month was unprecedented, constructive and successful.
The two sides agreed to further build on the health, industry, digital and green corridors launched earlier this year and carry out relevant cooperation.
Sunday, a Chinese official said CPEC has created 190,000 jobs over the past 9 years as Pakistan and China established the Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) on the CPEC in 2013, focusing on cooperation in Gwadar Port, energy, infrastructure and industries.
In recent years, the two sides have expanded their cooperation to the fields of science and technology, agriculture, society, people’s livelihood and information technology industries, said Meng Wei, spokesperson of China’s National Development and Reform Commission.
The cooperation outcome can be represented by Gwadar East Bay Expressway project, China-funded Gwadar Seawater Desalination Project, Carlot Hydropower Station, China’s aid to Pakistan’s flood-hit areas and more, the China News Service reported.
Next, the two sides will jointly implement the consensus between the leaders of the two countries, accelerate the cooperation in the fields of agriculture, mining, information technology, society and people’s livelihood, and promote the high-quality construction of the CPEC, the spokesperson added. –Agencies
