Cooperation centre in Beijing to facilitate China-Pakistan Science and Technology partnerships

ISLAMABAD    –     Pakistan needs scientific and technological cooperation from China through moderation of industry by using technology and innovation, biodiversity and climate change, and disaster mitigation and prevention.

These views were expressed by Khan Muhammad Wazir, Science and Technology Counsellor at the Pakistan Embassy in Beijing, while speaking at the first international seminar on the theme of ‘China-Pakistan Science and Technology Enterprises Cooperation’ held at the China-Pakistan Science and Technology Cooperation Centre in Beijing on Monday.

The Zhongguancun Belt and Road Industrial Promotion Association (ZBRA) and the Embassy of Pakistan in China co-hosted the seminar where more than 30 renowned science and technology organisations, both public and private, participated, Gwadar Pro reported on Monday.

The Science and Technology Counsellor pointed out that there is great potential for scientific and technological cooperation between China and Pakistan in diverse fields such as emerging technologies, advanced and new materials, green energy technologies, digital economy, smart cities, minerals and natural resources, and modernization of agriculture through technology.

He said that Pakistan needs food processing technologies, herbal medicines, ocean sciences, transport and highway technologies, space sciences, aeronautics and aerospace, medical technologies, drug discovery, and vaccine development on the fast track.

“The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) are focusing on promoting innovation and entrepreneurship, encouraging people-to-people exchanges, establishing joint research laboratories, cooperating on the establishment of technology and hi-tech parks, facilitating technology transfer initiatives, promoting quality scientific research in new and high-tech, enhancing innovation capacity through joint R&D, establishing institutional linkages, initiating cooperation on STEM education and science popularisation, and establishing an international think tank for S&T and economic development,” he added.

Khan Muhammad proposed that a coordination committee comprising representatives from ZBRA, the Pakistan Embassy in Beijing, MoST China, MoST Pakistan, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and STZA, etc needs to be jointly constituted to operate the China-Pakistan Science and Technology Cooperation Centre located in Beijing.

Zhang Xiaodong, the president of ZBRA, introduced the construction of the China-Pakistan Science and Technology Cooperation Centre. He shared that the objectives of the Centre are to build a bridge between China-Pakistan youth innovation and entrepreneurship.

He said that under the framework of CPEC, the Centre will prepare a cooperation plan for China-Pakistan science and technology enterprises, dock the development needs of artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, financial technology, biotechnology, agriculture, and other fields, gather innovative elements and financial resources, and serve Chinese technology enterprises to develop in Pakistan.