LAHORE: Consul General of China in Lahore Zhao Shiren says the recently- concluded third Belt and Road Forum has injected a fresh impetus into high-quality cooperation between China and Pakistan as both sides have agreed to fast track development of the Gwadar Port and upgrade of ML-1.

Addressing a seminar organised by an NGO on “The 3rd BRF: Benefits to Pakistan and Global Shared Community” here on Sunday, Mr Shiren said both China and Pakistan have agreed to fast track the Gwadar Port and ML-1 (railway) projects.

He said that 20 agreements and MoUs were signed, covering cooperation on infrastructure development, mining, industry, green and low-carbon development, health, space cooperation, digital development cooperation and agricultural export to China.

“During the BRF, 458 outcomes have been reached, including the Beijing initiative for deepening cooperation on connectivity, Belt and Road Green Development, international digital economy cooperation, the green investment and finance partnership, and high-level principles on corruption-free belt and road building. These also include specific targets such as providing 100,000 training opportunities on green development for partner countries by 2030, and increasing the number of joint laboratories to 100.”

Mr Shiren said commercial agreements worth $97.2 billion have also been concluded at the BRF CEO conference, which would help generate jobs and growth in the BRI countries.

He said the forum also decided to establish a BRF secretariat to facilitate institution-building and project implementation.

Punjab caretaker minister S.M. Tanveer invited Chinese companies to invest in new industries and technologies in the province.

Former Pakistan ambassador Nazir Hussain, Dr Amjad Magsi, Prof Dr Zhang Jiamei, Dr Shabbir Khan, Dr Ahtisham Ali, Prof Salahuddin Ayubi and Dr Waheed Ahmad Khan also spoke.

Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2023