Pakistan, China sign 24 tech MoUs to deepen digital cooperation

ISLAMABAD (APP) - Pakistan and China have expanded their technological cooperation through the signing of 24 memorandum of understanding (MoUs) aimed at strengthening digital collaboration under the Joint Working Group on IT Cooperation.

According to a document available with Wealth Pakistan on Sunday, the MoUs signed in Beijing include one government-to-government, seven government-to-business, and 16 business-to-business agreements.

The initiative focuses on developing an innovative and pragmatic digital corridor to enhance cooperation in the IT industry.

According to the document, the digital corridor is intended to create new avenues for Pakistani technology companies and expand cooperation in ICT infrastructure development, such as fiber optic cable projects, cybersecurity and human resource development, while supporting connectivity, emerging technologies and digital skills.

The document highlights that the Ministry of IT and Telecom has been pursuing multiple international collaborations to train up to 300,000 Pakistani youths in advanced digital skills, promote AI adoption and expand IT exports and digital capacity.

One major initiative is the skills training partnership with Huawei, which aims to train up to 300,000 youths in fields including artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cybersecurity.

The effort seeks to address the digital skills gap and contribute to job creation by leveraging Huawei’s global expertise and partnerships with Pakistani academic institutions.

Another initiative detailed in the document is the collaboration with Google on AI training. The partnership focuses on training government officials in artificial intelligence as part of a broader national AI effort covering school, university and vocational levels.

The document states that this aims to enhance public sector excellence and integrate AI across sectors such as the judiciary, healthcare and governance.

The document further noted collaboration with the Asian Development Bank through Ignite on practical AI use-case development. Priority areas include EdTech, HealthTech, AgriTech, FinTech, ClimateTech and GovTech. According to the document, this initiative translates national AI policy into actionable solutions while fostering a local AI innovation ecosystem.

The document also highlighted a planned nationwide ICT skills program with ZTE targeting up to 100,000 trainees, along with a proposal for ZTE to establish its eighth global training centre in Pakistan.

The initiative aims to strengthen human resource capacity and reinforce Pakistan’s position as a competitive technology hub.

According to the document, institutional initiatives supported by the World Bank under the Digital Economy Enhancement Project focus on developing digital public infrastructure, improving access to government services and modernising governance.