Pakistan has initiated the selection process for the country’s first ever manned space mission expected to go onboard the Tiangong Space Station, Associated Press of Pakistan on Wednesday quoted a spokesperson for the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) as confirming.

In February, PM Shehbaz Sharif announced that Pakistan will send a manned mission to space in collaboration with China.

Subsequently, Pakistan’s space agency Suparco called for proposals for innovative experiments to be conducted in the Chinese Space Station to maximise the scientific impact of the mission earlier this month.

China’s space programme has rapidly advanced over the years, achieving milestones like the Tiangong space station and lunar sample-return missions.

Speaking to APP, CSMA spokesperson Lin Xiqiang outlined the selection process which will take place in three stages. The preliminary selection will be held in Pakistan while secondary and final selection will be made in China.

He confirmed that the Pakistani astronaut will participate in a joint space flight mission as a payload specialist. He added that “the astronaut will be responsible for [conducting] scientific experiments on the behalf of Pakistan”.

PM Shehbaz on Tuesday stressed that Pakistan was “giving utmost importance to the space technology sector”, adding that China remained the country’s “most reliable and strategic partner”, while addressing a delegation from Galaxy Space, a Chinese space technology company.

The two Pakistani astronauts will undergo training at the Astronaut Centre of China, making Pakistan the first foreign country to join China’s space station training programme. The selection process is set to be completed by 2026.