Pakistan and China will promote tourism as well as people to people interaction in the new stage of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), said Yao Jing, Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan. "Both Pakistan and China are famous for the rich Asian civilisation, for the natural beauty and for the potential of tourism," said the Chinese ambassador while addressing the China Tourism and Culture Week 2019, organised by China Cultural Centre in Pakistan and Wuhan Tourism Promotional Event, China, in collaboration with Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Pakistan. It is a global event being celebrated throughout the world.
The ambassador further said that the new government in Pakistan is working very hard to promote tourism as the Foreign Ministry organised visits for foreign diplomats to some very beautiful valleys like Swat.
This year they also expect similar tourism promotion show from Pakistan agencies in China. They are going to promote Ghandhara Civilisation which is one of the most shining Asian civilisations in the sub-continent. It could be a great attraction for tourists to Pakistan, he added.
He further said that previously they were focussed on infrastructure projects but now they have a new stage and the people to people contact occupies major part of Pak-China cooperation in this new stage of the CPEC. Tourism and site-seeing are also the major areas to promote interaction, he added.
The ambassador further said that they are also trying to develop a package of the site-seeing between China and Pakistan. By demonstrating the potential of tourism cooperation between the two countries, the people would understand each other. He further said that China is open to Pakistani tourists and have a lot of resources and points to offer to them.
Dr Fridous Ashiq Awan, Special Assistant to Prime Minister for Information & Broadcasting said that Pakistan provides enormous opportunities to the Chinese people in the field of tourism. She said the Prime Minister also wants promotion of tourism in Pakistan. She said Pakistan desires cultural exchanges with China. "We have to learn from the success of China through empowering women in Pakistan as the women of China took great part in development of their country," said the special assistant, adding that China will also help Pakistan in knowledge economy. She said China always helped Pakistan in the difficult period of time.
She further said that the government has approved a new visa policy to facilitate travellers and tourists to Pakistan.
Artists from Wuhan Arts Troupe, as well as Pakistani Artists from National Performing Arts Group of PNCA performed in Gala Performance. Wuhan is a mega city in the middle reaches of the Yangtze industrial, scientific and educational base with the third largest number of colleges and universities in the country. Wuhan is a famous historical and cultural city in China and one of the birthplaces of China's Chu Culture. It is at the same time a key city for the high tech industry, auto industry and business circulation industry in China.
The event was attended among others by Ahmed Fadel Yacoub, Ambassador of Egypt, Christo Janse Van Noordwyk, Acting High Commissioner for South Africa, Charge de Affair of Embassy of Brazil, Jamal Shah, Director General PNCA, Li Yanxuan, Deputy Director China Cultural Centre in Pakistan, Dr Zhang Daojian, Head of Confucius Institute, Zeeshan Naqvi, Deputy Mayor of Islamabad, Xin Jin, Group leader of Wuhan Mucipal Bureaue of Culture and Tourism, China, and Leyla Zuberi, a renowned Pakistani actress.