Pakistan to strengthen economic ties with China with focus on agriculture, technology

ISLAMABAD, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that Pakistan and China are working to further strengthen economic ties, particularly in the fields of agriculture, information technology, mining, and infrastructure, according to a statement by Prime Minister's Office.

Speaking on Friday to the representatives of foreign companies operating in Pakistan, including those from China, in the country's southern port city of Karachi, Sharif said that economic ties between the two countries will further expand during the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Sharif said that during his official visit to China in June, he toured an agricultural university and a research center spanning hundreds of acres of land in China's Shaanxi province, emphasizing that if Pakistani graduates receive training from the institutions, they could help revolutionize the agricultural sector in Pakistan.

"Pakistan is an agricultural country, 60 percent of the population lives in rural areas, and we need to increase our agricultural production," he said, adding that last year Pakistan's agricultural exports increased by 3 billion U.S. dollars in value, and are planned to rise by 7 billion U.S. dollars this year.

Pakistan needs to adopt modern technology and methods to increase agricultural production and China can be an important partner for Pakistan in achieving these goals, the prime minister said.

He added that Pakistan and China will start joint ventures in the textile industry and agricultural production during CPEC's second phase, and these products will be exported to other countries.

Pakistan and China will develop a joint modus operandi in this regard, which will be equally beneficial for both countries, Sharif said.

Launched in 2013, the CPEC is a flagship project of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative. It is a corridor linking the Gwadar Port in southwest Pakistan's Balochistan province with Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The project highlights energy, transport, and industrial cooperation in the first phase, and in the second phase expands to the fields of agriculture and livelihood, among others.