Pakistan, Kazakhstan Agree on Corridor to Boost $1B Trade

Pakistan and Kazakhstan agreed to significantly enhance trade, investment, and regional connectivity, committing to raise the bilateral trade volume to $1 billion within the next year and to promote a multi-country transport corridor linking Central and South Asia.

“We have agreed to the Belarus- Russia- Kazakhstan- Uzbekistan, Afghanistan- Pakistan transport corridor to enhance our regional connectivity,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said during a joint press stakeout along with President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

The prime minister said both countries would encourage their respective business communities to come forward and invest in joint ventures, noting that despite strong political relations and shared goodwill, the existing investment portfolio remained negligible.

“Unfortunately, our trade volume is just a meager $250 million in last year. And this does not reflect not only the strength of our friendship, but also the potential of the two countries,” he said adding that there was great potential on both sides, and with the joint efforts, both sides could make significant progress.

Earlier, the two leaders witnessed the exchange of 37 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and agreements across a wide range of sectors. These included finance, trade, industry, transport, energy, health, culture, security, education, media, science, technology, climate change, agriculture, and other areas of mutual interest.

The prime minister reiterated Pakistan’s strong interest in expanding cooperation with Kazakhstan in energy, mining, transport, culture, and information sectors, noting that both countries were endowed with natural resources and human capital.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev described Pakistan as a reliable and important partner of Kazakhstan in South Asia and beyond. He said the elevation of bilateral relations to a strategic partnership opened new opportunities for cooperation across the full spectrum of bilateral and multilateral engagement.

President Tokayev highlighted cooperation in transport and logistics as a priority area, particularly projects aimed at expanding trade flows and improving connectivity. He said discussions also covered Pakistan’s growing role in regional transit and logistics, including the use of the ports of Karachi and Gwadar as potential gateways for Central Asian trade.

The Kazakh president said both sides also agreed to explore the resumption of direct air connections to promote business, tourism, and people-to-people contact.

President Tokayev also invited Pakistani companies to establish production facilities in Kazakhstan, particularly in agricultural processing, pharmaceuticals, and construction materials, and assured favorable conditions for Pakistani investors.