Industry, agri, technology: Expanded cooperation with China to help boost exports: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Monday that expanded cooperation with China in industry, agriculture and technology would help boost Pakistan’s exports and create employment, as he reviewed follow-up measures from a recent business forum held in China.

Chairing a meeting to assess follow-up actions from the Pakistan-China Business-to-Business (B2B) Conference held during his recent visit to China, the prime minister said strengthened private-sector linkages between the two countries marked the beginning of a new phase in economic partnership.

He directed that memoranda of understanding (MoUs) signed at the Hangzhou conference be promptly converted into formal agreements and joint ventures, stressing the need for timely implementation.

He also said he would personally chair monthly review meetings to monitor progress on initiatives emerging from the B2B conference.

Sharif directed officials to implement cooperation between the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), saying collaboration in agricultural research and modern technology would transform Pakistan’s farming sector and improve productivity through joint ventures and innovation.

A briefing at the meeting said 123 Pakistani and 436 Chinese companies had participated in the B2B conference held in Hangzhou on 24th May, where 207 MoUs worth approximately USD 7.54 billion were signed across multiple sectors, including energy storage systems, artificial intelligence, mobile phones and handheld devices.

The agreements also covered agriculture-related fields such as fertilisers, seeds, irrigation equipment, fisheries and food processing, as well as advanced industries including biotechnology and vaccine production, officials said.

The third Pakistan-China B2B investment conference was held in Hangzhou, in eastern China’s Zhejiang province, last month, attracting more than 500 enterprises from both countries.

As part of Prime Minister Sharif’s visit, the event focused on expanding cooperation in information technology, telecoms and other emerging sectors.

Sharif, who attended the conference and delivered a keynote address, expressed hopes for deeper cooperation in the digital economy and information technology.

The forum highlighted three main sectors – IT and telecoms, battery energy storage systems and agriculture – and provided a platform for direct engagement between companies, which exchanged contacts, discussed potential areas of cooperation and signed multiple agreements during matchmaking sessions.

The meeting was attended by Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Cheema, Minister for Information Technology Shaza Fatima Khawaja and other senior officials.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026