"Agricultural projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor have a positive impact on improving local agricultural technology and upgrading Pakistan's agricultural industry," highlighted H.E. Moin ul Haque, while visiting the headquarter of Pakistan-China red chili project in Chengdu, Sichuan Province in China on May 15. 

According to Chen Changwei, Chairman of Sichuan Litong Food Company, which has brought its chili cultivation experience and management techniques to Pakistan, Pakistan has a great potential to export dried chilli to China with the trade preferences between the two countries. 

The 15,000 acres of chili planted in South Punjab in 2023 have already been picked, with 10,000 tons of dried peppers expected to be harvested in the second half of 2023. 

After three years of demonstration planting, a growing number of farmers are seeing the quality and economic benefits of chili. The success of the demonstration base for chili cultivation is attracting more attention from local small and medium-sized farmers through surveys, trial planting, small-scale planting and large-scale planting. 

The ambassador also visited the production and R&D center of Pixian Douban, a major bean paste production base of Litong. Pixian Douban, made of Sichuan red chili, is an intangible cultural heritage of China. Chen expressed his willingness to extend the industrial chain to Pakistan. 

Chen added that the company has invested in a preliminary chili processing plant in Pakistan to facilitate the cultivation, promotion and trade of agricultural products such as sorghum, sesame and peanuts, so that more Pakistani agricultural products can be involved in the global supply chain.

Pakistan is a country with a primarily agrarian economy. The agricultural sector contributes to over 22 percent of the country's GDP and engages almost 38 percent of the total workforce. Agriculture is the primary sector of Pakistan's economy that also includes fishing and mining and thus agriculture remains the backbone for Pakistan's socio-economic development, employment, trade and food security.