Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Thursday said that the government would extend its full support to the IT and Telecom sector through a package to achieve the target of $5 billion in exports.

Chairing a meeting of the IT task force to devise a strategy for the development of the sector, the prime minister said the sector has great potential that needs to be unpacked.

He said that the government will provide all the facilitation and policy support to make it a robust sector of the country. He asked Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to convene a meeting of the task force on his return from Washington and firm up the policy recommendations.

The premier said that plans are underway to strengthen the working of IT training and incubation centers, call centers, telcos, sovereign technology parks (STP), software houses, and freelancers for the growth of this promising service sector.

The prime minister was briefed that with a workforce of around 40,000 IT professionals, Pakistan has a thriving IT and Telecom sector. With annual IT exports of $2.6 billion, it is the fourth-largest freelancers’ market and the 3rd largest reseller on Amazon worldwide.

The premier was briefed that in order to exploit its full growth potential, a rigorous perception-building and marketing campaign is needed to position Pakistan as an IT outsourcing hub in the world, especially for all potential IT export destinations in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.

Moreover, a comprehensive package to ease State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), and Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) regulations for the IT & Telecom sector is also needed.

The prime minister directed the authorities to take all possible measures for the promotion and growth of the IT & Telecom sector in the country.

The meeting was also attended by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, IT Minister Syed Amin ul Haque, and Minister of State for Finance Dr. Aisha Ghous Pasha among others.

Source: Pro Pakistan