Pakistan-China Cultural Exchange Programme proposed to pave way for Pakistan-China Cultural Corridor

Lahore: Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) President Moazzam Ghurki has proposed setting up of Pakistan China Cultural Exchange Programme in both the countries to pave the way for Pakistan-China Cultural Corridor.

The creation of Pak-China Cultural Corridor was a pre-requisite for sustainable success of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and One-Belt One-Road (OBOR) project.

Ghurki expressed these views during a think tank session held here at PCJCCI Secretariat.

He added that Pak-China collaboration on cultural aspects would not only strengthen the friendly relationship but also strengthen the economic relations on long-term basis.

He promised to advocate the idea of Pak-China Cultural Corridor under a systematic culture exchange programme. He said both the governments should think about establishing specialised Pak-China Cultural forums in major cities of the two countries.

PCJCCI Senior Vice President Fang Yulong said that cultural exchange between Pak-China would enhance mutual understanding between people and add fresh insight to broaden the horizons of people. “Our vision is to endorse culture exchange and harmony initiatives as an active player in the success of One-Belt-One-Road plan and more specifically CPEC,” he maintained.

The joint chamber’s Vice President Hamza Khalid informed the participants that currently 18,000 Pakistanis were studying in various disciplines at Chinese universities and these students form an important bridge between the people of Pakistan and China. He also said that cultures were diversified and civilisations were different but these were by nature; neither for conflicts nor were these confrontational. The ultimate goal for cultures and civilisations was for dialogue, tolerance, peaceful coexistence, harmony, and shared growth. Diversity spurs interaction among civilizations, which in turn promotes mutual learning and understanding.

Secretary General Salahuddin Hanif suggested that the interactions between the Pakistani and Chinese media should also be encouraged along with joint ventures in creative arts like cinema, theatre and music, led by inter-governmental collaborations.

He said that Pakistan had the potential to become the safest place of investment with collaboration with China in all fields of trade and industry.