Islamabad, Feb 12 (IANS): Pakistan and Chinese officials signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) declaring Gwadar (Pakistan) and Zhuhai (China) as twin cities, a media report said Thursday.

Gwadar is the capital of Balochistan province in Pakistan and Zhuhai is a prefecture-level city in China's Guangdong province.

Zhuhai vice-mayor Wang Qingl Li, Zhuhai port authority director general Hauang Wen Zhong, Gwadar district council chairman Babu Gulab and Gwadar port authority head Dostain Jamaldini put their signatures on the MoU at a ceremony in Gwadar Wednesday, Dawn reported.

Briefing the Chinese delegation on Gwadar, Gulab and Jamaldini said the city had a small population of 6,000 in 1903, which increased to 45,021 - according to the 1998 national census - and now stood at 85,000.

Under the Gwadar Master Plan, they said, several development projects were being executed in the city, including those involving hospitals, schools, roads and a dam.

Jamaldini said the board of revenue and the board of investment were also working on a plan to declare Gwadar a tax-free zone.

Under the plan, investment in power, water and infrastructure projects to be executed within a 30km radius of Gwadar port would be exempted from tax.

The amenity would also be applicable to products manufactured in the Gwadar industrial zone.

Later, the 13-member Chinese delegation visited Gwadar's free trade zone, its hospital and other projects.