Chinese firms join Pakistan's lithium, pharma projects

PM's visit, business conferences open new economic avenues: Haroon Akhtar

ISLAMABAD:

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Industries and Production and Federal Minister Haroon Akhtar Khan said on Monday that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's visit to China and the Pakistan-China business-to-business conferences had opened fresh opportunities for economic cooperation between the two countries.

He described the B2B engagements in the lithium-ion battery, agriculture and pharmaceutical sectors as extraordinary and historic progress. "Chinese companies' strong participation in these sectors offers Pakistan a major industrial opportunity," he said.

Pakistan would further strengthen its B2B ties with China to secure technology transfer, expand local manufacturing and boost exports, Haroon Akhtar added.

He was chairing a high-level meeting that reviewed progress on Pakistan-China B2B cooperation and the implementation of memorandums of understanding signed between businesses of both countries. Senior officials from all relevant ministries, departments, government bodies and other stakeholders attended the meeting.

The B2B contacts had already produced significant progress on multiple MoUs and joint ventures worth millions of dollars across different sectors, the adviser noted.

Haroon Akhtar stressed that the prime minister had issued clear instructions to turn the Pakistan-China agreements and MoUs into concrete and workable projects. "Signing MoUs alone is not enough," he said. "Real success depends on giving these agreements practical shape and ensuring that investments and joint projects actually begin."

He directed continuous follow-up on every MoU so that officials could achieve timely progress and ensure effective implementation. "The government of Pakistan remains fully committed to converting Pakistan-China B2B cooperation into practical investment, joint production, technology transfer and higher exports," he reaffirmed.

"Bringing Chinese investment and technology into Pakistan and linking it with local production and exports forms one of the government's key priorities," the adviser stated.

The meeting also examined the coordination and cooperation mechanisms among ministries, departments and stakeholders. Officials reviewed how to convert the progress from the B2B engagements into tangible investments, production facilities, joint ventures and export-oriented industrial projects.