Ai Ping visits PCI' appreciates PCI's initiatives to strengthen bilateral relations
Source : PCI Date : 24-05-2014 By : Staff Reported
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Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Chairman Pakistan China Institute, apprised Mr. Ai Ping, vice Minister, International Department of Central Committee (Communist Party of China), of the various activities and projects of PCI in augmenting people-to-people contact between Pakistan and China during the vice Minister’s visit to the PCI office on 17th February 2014.
The Chairman presented the PCI Annual Report 2013 and also highlighted the future projects of the think tank which include the recently launched online Chinese language classes, a program through which students in public sector universities across Pakistan avail a four month course in learning Chinese via video conferencing facility.
Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed welcomed the exchange of high-level visits between Pakistan and China, particularly the on-going visit of President of Pakistan to China and the upcoming visit of the Defence Minister of China to Pakistan, which would solidify the strategic partnership between the two 'all weather' friends and neighbours.
The Chairman stressed on the significance of conducting a parliamentary security dialogue between Pakistan and China in the interest of protecting future projects, for example Pakistan China Economic Corridor and Central Asian Economic Belt. He stated that he, in his capacity as a Senator and the Chairman of the Senate Defence Committee, hadalso made this proposal to Dr. Wang Zhengwei, Vice Chairman CPCC, recommending Kashgar as the venue for the first parliamentary security dialogue since the Xinjiang province is the critical link between the two countries as well as the two mega projects.
He also lauded the role of the Communist Party of China in pulling 500 million people out of poverty within a generation, and ensuring a smooth generational transition of leadership successfully, which showed the stability of China's political system.
Mr. Faisal Mushtaq, Chairman Roots School System, proposed that PCI, being an independent, autonomous and non-political body, could be the intermediary party in distributing development aid from China to ensure greater transparency and efficiency, giving reference to the recent multi-billion rupee agreement between the IPDF and BISP. He highlighted the importance of having more Chinese speakers in Pakistan for greater bilateral interaction, suggesting that PCI could be the official distributors of CRI’s Urdu courses of learning Chinese language.
Mr. Mustafa HyderSayed, the Executive Director PCI, suggested that PCI could form consortiums of cotton growers and textile manufacturers in Pakistan as well as of microfinance organizations working in Pakistan; the respective consortiums could work and assist in promoting the cotton growing sector of Xinjiang province and stimulating the businesses of small and medium enterprises.
Mr. Ai Ping stated that he was impressed by the achievements of PCI, particularly of the past year, noting that the Institute had endeavoured to enhance all aspects of Pak-China relations, be it state-to-state, or people-to-people. “The Communist Party of China strongly believes in extension of bilateral relations in all these areas,”he explained. “It is important to pass the relations from generation to generation to have long term, sustaining relations.”
Endorsing all the proposals presented on the occasion, he underscored the importance of working at the grass roots level in Pakistan and ensuring greater public awareness about China. In this regard, he particularly commended PCI’s initiatives in launching Chinese Language classes, both in the Roots School System and the latest online project.
He said that the Pak-China Economic Corridor is a project of mutual benefit as economic development is the solution to many problems, adding that China intends to develop its cotton growing sector in Xinjiang and stimulate its small enterprises through a microfinance network which could be another avenue of cooperation between the two countries.
Mr. Ping further assured his personal cooperation to PCI in strengthening bilateral relations.