China and Pakistan will establish a joint research center in October to promote the study of Earth sciences and sci-tech exchanges, an official in charge of the center’s preparatory work said during the 2023 China International Fair for Trade in Services. "The China-Pakistan Joint Research Center on Earth Sciences will be established in Islamabad, Pakistan's capital, in October as a high-level platform for scientific and technological innovation between the two countries to promote sci-tech cooperation and talent cultivation," according to Hong Tianhua. According to Xinhua, "the center is being established by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the Higher Education Council of Pakistan, and is supported by the CAS's Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment and Quaid-i-Azam University in Pakistan."
Its foundation also includes universities in Pakistan, such as the University of Peshawar, as well as CAS-affiliated institutes and other Chinese research groups. The center will pursue research in four areas: resources, the environment, and green development; geological formations and tectonic activity; and climate change and environmental repercussions. The center will also serve as a bridge between Chinese and Pakistani enterprises and institutions interested in investing in each other's ideas. Hong remarked, "We intend to construct a high-level platform for sci-tech cooperation between the two nations, and gradually extend it to surrounding countries," in order to aid the development of the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
