ISLAMABAD, Jan 14: Engineering Science, biotechnology, pharmaceutical sciences and IT are the major sectors in which Pakistan-China cooperation will be aggressively pursued.

This was said by Federal Minister for Science and Technology Prof Attaur Rahman, while presiding over a meeting on Monday.

The meeting was held to make decisions about implementations of memorandum of understandings (MoU) regarding a joint Pakistan- China research fund. The memorandum was signed during President General Pervez Musharraf’s recent visit to China.

The minister said a three-pronged strategy would be adopted to benefit from the joint research and development fund. As a first step, he instructed the ministry’s science and technology division to place advertisements in national newspapers, inviting organizations and individuals to submit projects in the identified areas. Those interested in submitting projects under the programme will be required to identify their Chinese counterparts also.

As a second step, the minister appointed some persons in all the identified areas to solicit projects and coordinate with the organizations related with their area.

Under the third step, information about reputed Pakistani organizations and individuals will be sent to Chinese Academy of Sciences to create linkages with their Chinese counterparts.

Prof Atta said signing of the MoU for joint research and development was acknowledgment of the mutual interest in developing closer scientific and technological research cooperation between the two countries.

It shows the two countries are convinced that mutual cooperation in scientific and technological research will strengthen the bonds of friendship and understanding between their people.