KEY POINTS
- Agreements to establish a digital corridor and create opportunities for Pakistani tech companies
- Pakistan’s Ministry of IT and Telecom is pursuing partnerships to train 300,000 youths in advanced digital skills
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have signed 24 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) aimed at strengthening digital collaboration between the two states under the Joint Working Group on IT Cooperation.
The MoUs signed in Beijing include one government-to-government agreement, seven government-to-business agreements, and sixteen business-to-business agreements, state media reported on Monday.
The initiative aims to establish an innovative and practical digital corridor to strengthen cooperation in the IT sector.
This digital corridor is expected to create new opportunities for Pakistani technology companies and enhance collaboration in ICT infrastructure development.
The Ministry of IT and Telecom has been actively pursuing international partnerships to train up to 300,000 Pakistani youths in advanced digital skills, promote the adoption of artificial intelligence, and expand IT exports and overall digital capacity.
The development aligns with Pakistan’s ongoing efforts to boost IT exports and strengthen digital cooperation with regional partners.
In November, Pakistan introduced the “Digital Silk Road” as the next major phase of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), proposing new technology partnerships with Beijing.
These include joint ventures in 5G/6G networks, hardware manufacturing, and ICT components.
Launched in 2015, CPEC is a multibillion-dollar connectivity programme linking western China to the Arabian Sea.
The initiative has traditionally focused on energy projects, highways, power plants, and the Gwadar port, with total committed investments estimated at around $60 billion.
As Pakistan and China enter CPEC’s second phase, cooperation is expanding beyond physical infrastructure to include technology, digital governance, manufacturing, and skills development.
The Digital Silk Road serves as Beijing’s framework for cross-border connectivity in areas such as fiber optics, cloud services, data routing, smart manufacturing, and emerging technologies. It is increasingly regarded as the backbone of CPEC’s next stage.
