ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Sunday that the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project will attract more Chinese investment and companies, as Islamabad eyes greater collaboration with Beijing to bolster its economy. 

CPEC is a multi-billion-dollar project that connects China and Pakistan through a network of highways, railways and pipelines. In December 2024, Pakistan announced that both countries would work on the CPEC project with a renewed focus. 

The government has said that the second phase of the CPEC project would be known as “CPEC 2.0” and would involve deeper collaboration, advanced technological transfer and transformative socio-economic projects.

“Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb stressed the importance of CPEC 2.0,” Pakistan’s finance ministry said while speaking to Hong Kong’s TVB News. 

“The second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will attract more Chinese companies and investment,” the finance minister said. 

Aurangzeb, who this week attended the Asian Financial Forum in Hong Kong, invited the Asian country to send delegations to explore trade and financial opportunities in Pakistan.

“Hong Kong can be a suitable location for joint ventures between Chinese and Pakistani companies,” the finance minister was quoted as saying. 

Pakistan’s foreign ministry said last week that the second phase of the project would focus on industrialization and Special Economic Zones (SEZs) as well as on clean energy, agriculture and livelihood projects. 

However, the project has been hit by Islamabad struggling to keep up financial obligations as well as attacks on Chinese targets by militants, especially in the country’s southwestern province. 
 

KARACHI: Pakistan’s largest livestock exhibition featuring thousands of animals in the southern port city of Karachi has drawn more than 1.2 million visitors in the past two days, as per an official, with the three-day event set to conclude today, Sunday. 

The exhibition has been organized by the Sindh government at the city’s Expo Center. It showcases a diverse range of livestock which includes over 2,000 animals, 1,000 birds and numerous reptiles, falcons and domestic pets.

Dr. Nazeer Hussain Kalhoro, director-general of the Sindh Livestock Department, told Arab News on Saturday that the main purpose of the event was to ensure collaboration among breeders, investors and farmers.

“The motto of this Sindh livestock expo is to connect, collaborate and thrive,” Kalhoro said.

“So, we are connecting people, and then we are signing MoUs to collaborate with each other. And then finally, there will be the development when we will thrive together.”

The official said that this was set to be the “largest Pakistan expo ever we have seen,” adding that the exhibition had been visited by 0.6 million people daily since it began on Friday. 

He said the numbers were expected to increase on the last day, which was a Sunday. 

Shakir Umar Gujar, president of the Dairy & Cattle Farmers Association, said it is essential to showcase Pakistan’s livestock globally through such exhibitions. 

“At the same time, these expos help farmers learn and adopt measures to enhance their production,” he said. 

“Livestock is a crucial component of the national economy, and such exhibitions are beneficial for farmers.”

Syed Nazeer Hussain, 45, was happy his children got to learn about the various animals in the country through the expo. 

“They’ll get to see and learn about our culture, the various breeds of animals we have in Pakistan, and gain awareness while being entertained,” he told Arab News. 

Dr. Kalhoro pointed out that climate change, combined with issues such as water scarcity and outdated farming technologies, has drastically altered Pakistan’s agricultural landscape. This added to the livestock sector’s importance. 

“When we got independence in 1947, the contribution of the crop sector was about 68 percent, and the livestock sector was only 32 percent,” he said. 

“Now this has been reversed because of climate change, because of the unavailability of the water, different technologies, and the seed problem.”

This shift, he noted, is directly tied to climate variability, which has led to poor crop yields, rising costs, and an overall decline in traditional farming practices.

Livestock, on the other hand, was thriving and the provincial government was trying to use it to generate capital for the country.

“Pakistan is having 225 million herds of livestock farmed livestock,” Dr. Kalhoro said. “It means that we are now harboring the third largest herd of milk-based or meat-based animals in the world,” he said. 

Muhammad Mikael Abbas, a student of grade five, was quite enthralled with the exhibition’s offering. 

“I saw cows, goats, sheep, dogs, parrots, and birds of all breeds,” Abbas said. “It was really enjoyable, and we’re still exploring to see what else might be here. 

“We’ll check everything out.”