Pakistan, Alibaba sign digital economy agreements as Shehbaz visits Hangzhou headquarters

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif visited the headquarters of Alibaba Group in Hangzhou on Monday, where he met Alibaba Chairman Joe Tsai and witnessed the signing of multiple agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) aimed at accelerating Pakistan’s digital transformation.

Senior ministers and officials from the Government of Pakistan, along with top Alibaba executives, attended the meeting.

During the discussions, Chairman Joe Tsai appreciated Pakistan’s role in promoting regional and global peace and stability and acknowledged the government’s commitment to digital transformation, technological innovation and creating an enabling environment for international investment.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif highlighted Pakistan’s potential in digital economy sectors including e-commerce, artificial intelligence, fintech, cloud computing and innovation-driven entrepreneurship.

The prime minister also underscored the government’s focus on empowering Pakistani youth through technology, skills development and international partnerships.

During the visit, the prime minister and Joe Tsai witnessed the signing and exchange of strategic agreements between Alibaba Group and Pakistani public and private sector entities.

On the special initiative of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Alibaba Chairman Joe Tsai agreed to sign a comprehensive strategic framework agreement with the Government of Pakistan.

The framework agreement aims to accelerate Pakistan’s digital transformation through initiatives related to artificial intelligence, cloud solutions, digital trade, SME development, fintech and healthcare innovation.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif termed the partnership an important step in strengthening Pakistan-China economic and technological cooperation and welcomed Alibaba’s long-term commitment to Pakistan.

Under the agreements, Pakistan’s Ignite and Alibaba Cloud will collaborate on developing localised AI models for Urdu and regional languages, launching nationwide skills development programmes for 500,000 individuals and organising AI hackathons and innovation initiatives.

In the healthcare sector, DAMO Academy and Sky47 will deploy AI-powered disease screening systems across major Pakistani cities, while DAMO Academy and Ignite will jointly develop embodied intelligence capacity-building programmes at Pakistani universities.

Alibaba and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) also agreed to onboard at least 2,000 Pakistani SMEs onto a dedicated “Pakistan Pavilion” to improve access to international markets and AI-powered business tools.

In the fintech sector, Koko Tech will launch a Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) solution in Pakistan backed by an initial investment of $3 million to promote digital commerce and financial inclusion.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the agreements would create new opportunities for investment, innovation, employment generation and technological cooperation between Pakistan and China while supporting Pakistan’s goal of becoming a regional digital economy hub.