
A Chinese company, Chengdu, announced its plans to invest $700 million in Punjab’s Information Technology (IT) and smart city projects, promising to bring revolutionary initiatives to the province.
These plans were revealed during a meeting between a Chinese delegation and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad.
The delegation included Scarlett, Chengdu’s General Coordinator for the ICT Hub, and Huawei’s Deputy CEO Yu Ray.
Chengdu is exploring lucrative investment opportunities in the country in partnership with the Punjab government to establish state-of-the-art facilities for the projects. The significant advancements include the launch of an e-taxi service, along with the establishment of cloud and data centres at the Nawaz Sharif IT City in Lahore.
The company aims to develop the first e-commerce platform in Pakistan under this partnership, which will provide training to Pakistani youth in global online trading, contributing to the country’s economy and fostering financial sustainability.
The smart city project planned for Lahore includes the development of a smart control room, advanced transportation solutions, and more, aiming to improve urban management for increased sustainability and efficiency.
Moreover, this initiative promises to establish an artificial intelligence (AI) industry centre for the advancement of Pakistan.
Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif expressed enthusiasm about transforming Punjab into an IT hub. She emphasized that the partnership is likely to pave the way for a transformative technological future.