With debt-burdened economy, Pakistan eyes Moon landing by 2035: Can China help make its space ambitions a reality?

Pakistan is planning two linked milestones: its first crewed space mission and a lunar landing target for 2035. The first astronaut is expected to fly from a Chinese space centre on 25 November. This matters because it marks a major step for Pakistan’s space programme, while also showing how closely its progress depends on China.

The astronaut will travel in a Chinese-built spacecraft launched from a Chinese facility. Chinese instructors will provide training. The selected candidate will serve as a payload specialist. That means the astronaut’s main task will be conducting scientific experiments in orbit, not controlling the spacecraft as a pilot. A SUPARCO official also said the astronaut is expected to communicate in Mandarin.

Pakistan hopes its Chinese partnership will support the longer-term Moon goal. However, the mission relies heavily on Chinese infrastructure, technology and expertise. The planned 2028 Chang’e-8 rover contribution could offer another way to build domestic engineering experience before the 2035 target.

A payload specialist is an astronaut assigned to manage experiments, instruments or other mission equipment. The role is focused on the mission’s scientific or technical work. In Pakistan’s planned flight, the astronaut will conduct scientific experiments in orbit. This makes the person an active contributor to the mission without being responsible for piloting the spacecraft.

A spacecraft pilot has a different responsibility. The pilot helps operate and control the vehicle, including its flight and mission procedures. The article distinguishes the roles by saying Pakistan’s selected candidate will not pilot the spacecraft. Instead, the astronaut will serve as a payload specialist and work with the mission’s scientific payload. The astronaut is also expected to communicate in Mandarin.

This arrangement lets Pakistan participate in human spaceflight while China supplies the spacecraft, launch facility and training. It provides an important first experience, but it also highlights Pakistan’s continuing reliance on Chinese systems and expertise.

Pakistan’s space ambitions are unfolding alongside serious economic pressure. Government data put headline inflation at 7.1%. National poverty was estimated at 28.9%, affecting around 70 million people. These figures show the scale of the social and financial demands competing for government attention. They also make expensive, long-term space projects harder to fund domestically.

The article links these pressures to high public debt, poverty and dependence on external financial assistance. Recent stabilisation efforts and International Monetary Fund support have eased some immediate pressures. However, structural weaknesses remain. They constrain public spending and long-term investment, which are both important for building independent launch, spacecraft and research capabilities.

Pakistan is therefore using cooperation with China to pursue major space milestones. Chinese infrastructure, technology and expertise support the planned astronaut mission. The partnership may reduce the need for Pakistan to finance every capability alone, but it also leaves the country’s ambitions closely tied to Beijing while domestic economic problems continue.

China has been Pakistan’s main space partner since cooperation began in 1990. Their early collaboration included the launch of Pakistan’s Badr-I experimental satellite. Over time, China helped Islamabad expand its satellite capabilities. This partnership matters because it has supported communication, Earth-observation and now human-spaceflight ambitions.

The assistance covers several programmes. China supported the Paksat series, including Paksat-1R and Paksat MM1, as well as the PRSS-1 Earth-observation satellite. In 2024, Pakistan’s ICUBE-Q lunar CubeSat travelled on China’s Chang’e-6 mission, which returned samples from the Moon’s far side. Chinese instructors are also training Pakistan’s first astronaut for a planned mission.

The partnership is continuing. Islamabad plans to contribute a Pakistani-built lunar rover to China’s Chang’e-8 mission, expected around 2028. These projects expand Pakistan’s participation in space exploration, but the article notes that its major ambitions remain strongly dependent on Chinese infrastructure, technology and expertise.

Contributing a lunar rover to Chang’e-8 could help Pakistan demonstrate that its engineers can design and build space hardware. The mission is expected around 2028 and will be led by China. This gives Pakistan a place in lunar exploration while using a larger partner’s programme and infrastructure. It could also strengthen the country’s technical experience before its 2035 Moon-landing target.

Sending experiments on Chinese spacecraft offers a similar benefit. Pakistan’s astronaut would conduct scientific experiments in orbit as a payload specialist, while its ICUBE-Q CubeSat already travelled on Chang’e-6 in 2024. In these arrangements, Pakistan supplies scientific or engineering work, while China provides the spacecraft, launch facility and related expertise.

The main gain is participation and capability-building. Pakistan can develop experience in experiments, payloads and rover engineering without independently providing every launch and mission system. The limitation is dependence: the article says Pakistan’s ambitions remain tied to China’s technological capabilities.

A country does not always need to build every launch vehicle, spacecraft and facility independently. It can partner with another space agency, buy launch services, place experiments on a host spacecraft, or contribute instruments and payloads to a shared mission. These routes can provide access to space while spreading technical, financial and operational demands across partners.

Pakistan’s programme demonstrates this model. Its first astronaut will use a Chinese-built spacecraft launched from a Chinese facility after training with Chinese instructors. Pakistan’s ICUBE-Q CubeSat flew on China’s Chang’e-6 mission. Islamabad also plans to provide a Pakistani-built rover for Chang’e-8. In each case, Pakistan contributes people, payloads or hardware while China supplies major mission systems.

Such cooperation can build practical experience in satellites, experiments and rover engineering. It may also make ambitious projects more affordable for a country facing debt, poverty and inflation. The trade-off is dependence. Pakistan gains access and capability, but its programme remains tied to Chinese infrastructure, technology and expertise.

Human spaceflight and lunar missions require many connected systems because people and equipment must travel safely, operate in space and complete scientific tasks. A launch vehicle must carry the mission away from Earth. The spacecraft must support the crew and control the flight. Training prepares astronauts for procedures and emergencies. Communications connect the crew with mission controllers.

Scientific equipment adds another layer. Experiments and payloads must survive launch, function in orbit or near the Moon, and return useful results. Pakistan’s planned astronaut will conduct experiments as a payload specialist, while its proposed Chang’e-8 rover would need to operate as part of a lunar mission. These systems depend on careful coordination between spacecraft, crews, facilities and ground teams.

The article shows why partnerships matter. China is providing the spacecraft, launch facility, training and expertise for Pakistan’s first astronaut mission. Pakistan is also using Chinese missions for lunar payloads. This approach can create access and experience without requiring immediate independent development of every costly capability.