Aitizaz Hassan

ISLAMABAD, July 4, (INP-WealthPK): Experts have urged the government to devise a five-year balanced plan to promote and protect information technology (IT) sector in Pakistan.

They told WealthPK that Pakistan had a vibrant IT market but the sector needed incentives to play a due role in boosting the national economy. Although Pakistan’s IT sector has missed the target of $3.5 billion in the financial year 21-2022, it has been ranked second in the South Asian market. A phased-wise balanced policy is the need of the hour to protect and promote IT industry in Pakistan.

Dr. Sajid Amin, a research fellow at Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), said that initially a short-term protective plan should be devised for the IT sector. He said that the IT sector should not be given a blanket protection environment. He added that the IT sector should be incentivised in a balanced way.

“Suppose government chalks out a five-year plan for IT, the first three years should be related to protection, subsidies and incentives. The next two years should be a graduation period for IT industry. The government should also give a proper graduation exit plan to IT sector,” he said.

Dr. Sajid said that IT should be the most priority sector in Pakistan and it must have access to finance and credits. He said that the recent IT tax regime was discouraging. It is also a fact that compatibility cannot be improved without competitive atmosphere. After a proper protective plan, a competitive market should be given to IT sector to achieve the product diversification and quality.

“In Pakistan the subsidy provision is considered an incentive for any sector. We should provide conducive environment to the industry to make it independent,” he said.

Dr. Sajid said that the universities could be made a hub of IT across the country. Universities can play a vital role so there should be a linkage between IT industry and IT universities.

“Now the world is shifting its economies from goods to services. The IT sector doesn’t need big investment. For example, a freelancer requires only a laptop, computer and internet provision but unfortunately IT is not being recognised as an industry,” he said.

Dr. Sajid said that more females should be engaged in IT sector and they should be given a proper credit market financial access for development of the industry in Pakistan.

Hamza Saeed, the director of strategic planning and client services at Special Technology Zones Authority (STZA), told WealthPK that the government appreciated the recent surge in IT sector.

He said that the main issue was continuity of IT policy. He said that private sector had already shown concerns about the continuity of policies. The business firms should be taken into confidence in this regard. The continuity of policy should not be taken for granted.

Hamza Saeed said that protective strategy was essential for IT sector. IT sector is the only industry which grows exponentially compared to other industries. Technology as whole should be protected and incentivised because it pays back in double.

“We have to be patient and instead of deciding quick fixes, we need to present short-term, mid-term and long-term policies with assurance to investors,” he said.

Hamza said that STZA was all about competition with international market, however, it believed in giving incentives to the IT sector in shape of technology transfer.

“Import is not bad but it must be productive. We should link the import with export to make local IT industry self-sufficient,” Hamza told WealthPK.

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