LAHORE: Punjab Local Government Minister Zeeshan Rafiq, accompanied by Secretary Local Government Shakeel Ahmed Mian, will attend an international conference in China from November 11 to 13.

According to a ministry’s spokesperson here on Friday, the international conference is to be held in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan. Around 300 delegates from 30 countries are participating in this conference.

During his visit, the Minister for Local Government will also meet with Sichuan Provincial Party Committee Secretary Weng Xiaohui and the Governor of Sichuan to explore the possibilities of further promoting friendly relations between Punjab and Sichuan. It may be added here that both Punjab and Sichuan were declared sister provinces in 2006. Zeeshan Rafiq will represent Punjab in the international conference to be held in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan.

Commenting on the visit, the Minister said that he would highlight the people-friendly projects of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz during his address to the international conference.

"During the visit to China, we would examine the possibilities of generating waste-to-energy technology as around 200 dumping sites were being built under the Suthra Punjab programme,” he added, adding that it was possible to save millions of rupees in financial resources by utilising waste.

Rafiq further said that Sichuan is important with regard to the development of technology; they would also examine how Punjab could benefit from Sichuan's experience in certain fields.

The Secretary said that Sichuan was China's largest province in terms of agricultural production and hence, it was important to study Chinese successes in the agriculture sector so that Punjab could emerge as the food basket of Pakistan. Thus, they would also visit the agricultural facilities of Sichuan, he added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024