Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday assuring all-out facilitation by his government, invited Chinese companies, particularly related to the textile sector, to establish their industry in Pakistan.

The prime minister, chairing a meeting to discuss the promotion of Pakistan-China cooperation, said China was a key partner in Pakistan’s development. Pakistan desires to enhance cooperation with China in agriculture, information technology, and energy besides enhancing its exports to China.

In the meeting, different ministries presented their proposals to promote the Pakistan-China economic relationship, a PM Office press release said.

The prime minister reiterated that the government would provide foolproof security to Chinese nationals working in Pakistan as a comprehensive security plan had already been formulated.

He told the participants of the meeting that the government was preparing for the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and expressed the hope that with China’s cooperation, Gwadar Port would become a logistics hub.

Prime Minister Shehbaz said that the CPEC second phase would also feature the establishment of Agriculture Demonstration Zones, and instructed the ministries to prepare for the launch of new projects with Chinese cooperation and enhancing business-to-business linkages.

He told the meeting that China could also assist Pakistan in formulating a strategy to boost its exports.

Federal ministers Ahsan Iqbal, Jam Kamal Khan, Ahad Khan Cheema, Muhammad Aurangzeb, Attaullah Tarar, Dr Musaddik Malik, Rana Tanveer Hussain, Awais Ahmed Leghari, and Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, State Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Special Assistant to PM Tariq Fatemi, Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Jahanzeb Khan and relevant senior officers attended the meeting.