A delegation from the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), led by Deputy Commander Ha Zengyou, has met Advisor to the Chief Minister Punjab Ali Dar to discuss deeper cooperation between Punjab and Xinjiang, according to a post by The Office of AI on LinkedIn. The discussion focused on agriculture, artificial intelligence (AI), industrial production, and emerging technologies, including how data-driven and digital capabilities can support smarter farming, better resource management, and higher agricultural productivity. Both sides also explored opportunities for knowledge exchange and practical collaboration, building on the long-standing Pakistan-China partnership. The post does not mention any agreement, project, or funding, and it does not give the date of the meeting.
The meeting follows earlier contacts between Punjab and Xinjiang. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif visited Xinjiang earlier this year and met an XPCC delegation as part of a trip that focused on agriculture, irrigation, livestock, and new technologies, according to The Express Tribune. The two sides discussed cooperation in irrigation, mechanisation, and livestock, and the chief minister said Punjab wanted to expand cooperation with China in agriculture, industry, minerals, and new technologies. Pakistan’s federal government has also invited XPCC and China Xinjiang Group to explore investment in the country’s agriculture and agribusiness sectors, in a meeting held in July 2025, according to Arab News, with research, cotton production, seed development, and irrigation efficiency listed as areas for cooperation.
The Office of AI is Punjab’s body for artificial intelligence initiatives, and Dar advises the chief minister on AI and special initiatives. Punjab’s AI Vision 2029, which the office promotes, aims to make the province the most AI-enabled in South Asia by 2029, and agriculture is a natural area for it because the sector employs nearly 38 percent of Pakistan’s workforce and contributes around 19 percent of its gross domestic product. Digital tools such as satellite imagery, sensors, and data analysis can help farmers decide when to irrigate, how much fertiliser to apply, and when to harvest, which can reduce water use and improve yields. Xinjiang is a major agricultural region in China, and the XPCC runs large farms there, so the meeting touches on the type of precision farming that the Punjab government has said it wants to adopt.
The XPCC is a state-run economic and paramilitary organisation in China’s Xinjiang region that operates farms, industries, and construction businesses. It has been under United States sanctions since July 2020, when Washington cited what it described as human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and Chinese authorities have rejected the allegations, with the Chinese Foreign Ministry calling the matter an internal affair and urging that the sanctions be withdrawn. The Office of AI’s post does not discuss this background, and it does not say whether the proposed cooperation would involve technology transfer, joint ventures, or training. Any follow-up would depend on formal proposals from either side, which have not been announced.
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