Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday inaugurated National Technology Park in Islamabad, renamed it as Daanish IT Park, and directed the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications to select a management company through transparent bidding, saying the facility would promote innovation, develop youth skills and support Pakistan’s economic growth. The park would bring together artificial intelligence (AI) experts, startups, incubation centres, innovation hubs, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and industry leaders to create an ecosystem for skills development, entrepreneurship and technological advancement.
It is known to all that during his tenure as Chief Minister of Punjab, PM Shehbaz Sharif introduced several landmark Information Technology (IT) and e-governance initiatives that laid foundation for digital transformation in the province. Among others, these included expansion of Punjab Information Technology Board, establishment of Arfa Software Technology Park and IT University, Punjab Land Record Management and Information System, Punjab Safe Cities Authority, and Youth Laptop Scheme. He launched similar initiatives as Prime Minister aimed at accelerated digitization and carving out a place for Pakistan on the global IT map.
These include AI & 2030 Roadmap, Spark and Elevate Programme, Pakistan Venture Fund, Quantum Valley Pakistan, and Pakistan Digital Authority. The Daanish IT Park, built with active support of South Korea, is also a landmark project aimed at boosting the country’s IT-enabled services and help scale Pakistan’s IT exports toward a $25b target. The facility is designed to generate thousands of specialized jobs, support thousands of freelancers, and provide digital skills and technical training to young people. These goals are worth achieving yet success will depend on harmonisation of all governmental policies as some of them are creating bottlenecks in the way of making Pakistan an IT hub.