ISLAMABAD: Several young leaders from China and Pakistan on Friday said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would take people-to-people ties between the countries to next level.
A virtual webinar titled “Future leaders in shaping Pakistan-China relations” was held in commemoration of 70 years of Pakistan-China diplomatic relations under the aegis of Pakistan-China Institute.
The conference was arranged under the Friends of Silk Road initiative to understand and facilitate bilateral youth exchanges under the CPEC as it enters its second phase. This was the first-of-its-kind bilateral dialogue aimed at engaging youth of both countries.
An illustrious panel of eight speakers, including young parliamentary leaders, Senator Qurratul Ain Marri and Senator Dr Afnanullah Khan participated in the webinar.
The keynote speakers were divided into two sessions, which were moderated by Guancha Editor Qianli Liu, while opening remarks were given by Pakistan China Institute Executive Director Mustafa Hyder Sayed.
The theme of one session was “Pakistan-China Future Cooperation: A Perspective of Young Leaders” whereas the session two was themed as “People to People Connectivity: Role of media and culture”.
Talking about youth exchanges, Qianli said that youth development does not distinguish on race, ethnicity, and religion, and so it must be taken forward.
Mustafa in his opening remarks talked about how Friends of Silk Road initiative, started in February 2019, has brought prominent members of political parties, business groups, students, civil society, members of academia and media together to enhance connectivity among the people of two countries. He highlighted that these exchanges are a fundamental pillar of Pakistan-China relations, as the bond between the two countries is rooted in their people. Moreover, he highlighted the need for the youth to expand and enhance this beautiful and inherited bilateral strategic relationship for the next 70 years. While talking about CPEC, Mustafa said that this mammoth project will engineer social equity revolution in the country.
Dr Afnan quoted China President Xi Jinping, who had emphasised the need to promote the deepened integration of internet, big data, and artificial intelligence with the real economy, and added that Pakistan needs to learn from the Chinese model to harness big data for making better-informed decisions, such as enhancing GDP growth.
Bayazeed Kasi, advisor to PTI on CPEC affairs, spoke on role of youth in building a community of shared future. Recounting his interactions with youth in Balochistan, Kasi highlighted that Pakistan’s youth is more than eager to contribute to Pak-China iron brotherhood. However, he highlighted that as 65 per cent of Pakistan’s population consists of youth, more opportunities need to be provided to them so they can contribute towards strengthening Pakistan-China relations. He highlighted that the academia needs to train and provide a platform to the youth so they are motivated to work for the welfare of people. He concluded by saying, “An untrained worker can never make a building and so we need to train our youth on the lines of contributing towards Pakistan-China relations.”
Similarly, other participants also shed light on the diplomatic relations between the two countries and urged the youth to contribute more towards the relations.
The online event lasted for two hours and thirty minutes, including an hour-long question and answer session among the 50 participants.
