THERE are hardly any women in the prime minister’s delegation to China. This has largely gone unnoticed because gender balance is rarely an attribute of Pakistani delegations abroad. But it bears calling out as it represents a broader missed opportunity.

Sino-Pak celebrations of their 75-year partnership have focused on mutually beneficial opportunities, including CPEC 2.0. The PM’s visit is dominated by a B2B investment conference and visits to major Chinese companies, including Alibaba, in an effort to boost economic cooperation between the two countries. Future plans for the countries’ collaboration are ambitious and wide-ranging, encompassing growth, innovation, green development, livelihoods and connectivity. What remains to be seen is how inclusive this collaboration will be, particularly with regards to women.

The Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) of which CPEC is a key part has not had an explicit gender lens. That said, Chinese President Xi Jinping has since 2015 reiterated China’s commitment to gender equality, recognising the importance of women’s contribution to growth and sustainable development. As he puts it, Chinese women “support half of the sky”.

World Bank data from 2023 shows 60.5 per cent of Chinese........

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