Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Wang Hao, Party Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Zhejiang Provincial Committee, in Hangzhou on Saturday and discussed ways to expand bilateral cooperation in key economic and technological sectors.

Wang Hao welcomed the prime minister to Zhejiang Province during the high-level meeting.

PM Shehbaz praised Zhejiang’s rapid development and commended Chinese President Xi Jinping’s leadership during his tenure as Party Secretary of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee, particularly his vision that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets.”

The prime minister said Zhejiang’s progress demonstrated how ecological preservation, green development and sustainable economic growth could advance together.

He said Pakistan attached great importance to strengthening cooperation with Zhejiang in the digital economy, e-commerce, information technology, telecommunications, agriculture, renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and skills development.

PM Shehbaz said provincial-level collaboration remained a key pillar of Pakistan-China relations and could help advance the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) through industrial cooperation, agricultural modernisation, technology partnerships and export-led growth.

During the visit, the prime minister witnessed the signing of two cooperation agreements.

The first Memorandum of Understanding established a sister-province relationship between Zhejiang and Punjab to promote cooperation in trade, investment, agriculture, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges.

The second agreement, signed between Hangzhou Normal University and the Embassy of Pakistan in Beijing, paved the way for the establishment of the China-Pakistan Joint Technology Research Centre at the university.

According to officials, the centre will promote academic cooperation, applied research, technology exchange and institutional linkages between the two countries.

The prime minister said Pakistan and China were entering a new phase of practical, people-centric and development-oriented cooperation as the two countries mark the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations.