Pakistan is working ambitiously to attain $15 billion in IT exports within three years, Federal Minister for Information Technology, Syed Amin-ul-Haq said.
He was addressing a meeting on “Promoting U.S.-Pakistan Innovation and Investment” at the National Incubation Centre Karachi (NICK) at NED University of Engineering and Technology.
Dilawar Syed- the U.S. Department of State Special Representative (S/R) for Commercial and Business Affairs also participated in the panel discussion along with co-speakers Dr. Syed Akbar Zaidi, Executive Director of the Institute of Business Administration, and Atif Rais Khan, Founder and CEO of LMKT.
The IT minister said that Pakistan’s IT exports had reached $2.6 billion in 2021-22, whereas the target for FY 2022-23 was fixed at $3 billion and the IT ministry was entirely determined to improve the figure to $15 billion in the three-year plan.
Read more: Pakistan eyeing $50 billion IT exports in next few years
In order to fulfill the vision of Digital Pakistan, the federal ministry has taken various steps for the promotion of the sector, which caused the expansion of internet connectivity, broadband, and cellular coverage in the country, he added. The minister further added that, currently, 193 million Pakistanis have mobile phone and internet connectivity, however, the figure was 160 million in FY 2018-19.
Moreover, ensuring a sound monthly growth of broadband coverage and expansion of 4G technology, the government is keenly supervising the launch of 5G in Pakistan during the current year, Aminul Haq said.
After the successful digitalization of all the federal ministries and paperless cabinet meetings, now we are striving hard to materialize the objective of paperless parliament till coming March, the minister said.
National Incubation Centres, in this regard, played a key role in the promotion of entrepreneurship and the number of startups have crossed 1000 in the country, which generated hundreds of employment opportunities, he said, adding, that the financial volume of startups considerably rose five times (500 percent) to $373 million from $75 million of FY 2019-20.
