President Zardari calls for more Chinese investment

Chinese team plans $1b investment in medical city in Pakistan

KARACHI:

President Asif Ali Zardari has called for greater Chinese investment in diverse sectors of Pakistan's economy to boost economic and commercial cooperation between the two countries.

"Pakistan is committed to facilitating and supporting Chinese investors in every possible way," Zardari said while talking to a Chinese business delegation, led by Chinese Consul General in Karachi Yang Yundong at Bilawal House, according to statement issued on Thursday.

He also emphasized the need for enhanced interaction between the people of the two countries, especially between the investors and businesses, to increase bilateral trade and economic relations.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, Minister for Transport Sharjeel Inam Memon, Minister for Energy Nasir Hussain Shah, and Special Assistant to the CM for Investment Qasim N Qamar also attended the meeting.

The delegation showed interest in investing $1 billion to establish a medical city in Pakistan to advance the country's healthcare sector. The delegation also expressed desire to invest in diverse sectors of Pakistan's economy, especially agriculture, livestock, energy, transport, and manufacturing.

Welcoming the delegation, the president said that Pakistan and China share commonalities of interests and views on important issues, besides enjoying deep-rooted and historic brotherly ties.

"We have been close friends for decades, and it was my vision to develop Gwadar Port into a regional trade and economic hub that would not only improve regional connectivity but would also boost regional trade and economic cooperation," he stated.

The president said Pakistan would welcome Chinese investors and prefer to do business with China. "Chinese language courses introduced at various institutions in Sindh will prove to be an important step towards strengthening people-to-people and cultural linkages between Pakistan and China," he added.