KARACHI: Pakistan has proposed establishing direct feeder shipping lines with Malaysia to reduce freight costs, shorten transit times and deepen maritime cooperation, the country’s maritime affairs minister said on Tuesday, as Islamabad seeks broader trade connectivity with Southeast Asia amid a rising demand for its agricultural exports.

The proposal came during a meeting in the UK between Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry and Malaysia’s Deputy Minister of Transport, Datuk Hasbi bin Habibollah, in which the two sides reviewed existing cooperation and discussed new areas of partnership across maritime training, digitalization and port operations. 

Chaudhry offered Malaysia a formal Memorandum of Understanding to enhance seafarer training and establish a two-way cadet-exchange program. 

“This exchange will contribute to the professional development of young seafarers in both countries and strengthen long-term cooperation in the maritime sector,” he said.

Pakistan also invited Malaysia to access its expanding digital port-modernization systems, including the Pakistan Single Window platform now fully operational at Karachi Port and Port Qasim. Islamabad has been promoting its digital trade infrastructure as a model for improving transparency and reducing cargo-clearance times.

A key feature of Pakistan’s proposal is the creation of direct feeder links connecting Pakistani ports with Malaysia, and onward to Indonesia, to cut shipping durations and freight charges. Chaudhry said the new routes could significantly boost Pakistan’s rice exports to Southeast Asia while improving the flow of edible oil imports from Malaysia and Indonesia, two commodities that form a large share of Pakistan’s bilateral trade with the region.

For Malaysia, the cooperation would expand its maritime training network and support its regional logistics-integration agenda as the country modernizes its transport sector.

Both governments agreed to hold technical consultations in the coming weeks to finalize the scope of the MoU, design training modules and establish mechanisms for implementing the cadet-exchange program, the statement added.