PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Board of Investment and Trade (KP-BoIT) and China’s ADM International Trading Company have inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to foster strategic collaboration.
The MoU was signed during the China Innovation Summit and Digital Economy Tour from November 22 to 25, 2023.
According to Iqbal Sarwar, a Director at KP-BoIT, the focus of the agreement is on joint establishment of infrastructure for charging and manufacturing Electric Vehicles (EVs) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
This initiative, part of the CAREC-led efforts for cooperation in e-commerce and electronics, aligns with the goals of the Automotive Policy 2021–26.
ADM aims to provide cutting-edge EV services by creating a nationwide charging network and establishing assembly and manufacturing facilities for EVs and related products in Pakistan.
The partnership, as described by KP-BoIT Director. Iqbal Sarwar, not only supports the province’s Sustainable Development Goals but also presents significant opportunities for EV investors, marking a substantial step towards reduction in imports.
Following the initiative, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has joined hands with the Electrical Vehicle Academy (EVA) Islamabad, a private company which is providing hands on trainings regarding electrical vehicles, have agreed to collaborate in training of skilled persons and technical students for the manufacturing of electric vehicles in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
This initiative will further help to promote the conversion of traditional vehicles towards electricity consumed vehicles in the province.
As per this collaboration, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Industries, Commerce and Technical Education Department and EV Academy Islamabad will work jointly to provide the required trainings.
In this connection, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA), a relevant subsidiary formation of the department will provide the space and required equipment for the subject training, while the training company will extend support in imparting requisite skill through their qualified and trained trainers to train the technical students and skilled workers from the same modern technology.
In this regard, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Caretaker Minister for Industries, Commerce and Technical Education, Dr. Aamer Abdullah, met with relevant authorities of the company, (EV Academy), at Islamabad and discussed with them matter related to training of electric vehicles production/ manufacturing in the province. Similarly, the possibilities of mutual collaboration also came under consideration.
On this occasion, it was agreed to make jointly efforts for providing necessary training for the manufacturing/production of electric vehicles in the province, while the caretaker minister termed this effort of mutual cooperation in the province very useful and said that the skilled trainers of the company, equipped with advance experience of the automotive industry of the United States, will make possible to train the local technical students, skilled workers and trainers for promotion of electrical vehicles on local level.
It is merit to mention that the EV Academy provides training courses on the latest technologies in the automotive industry with professional technicians and trainers, equipped with US experience in the field of manufacturing electric vehicles.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023