The National Information Technology Board (NITB) has actively participated in implementing e-governance projects by developing and launching more than 31 portals and more than 15 mobile applications during the past four years. According to an IT official, the NITB made sure that the e-office was implemented in more than 100 departments and 40 ministries as part of the paperless track initiative.

He said because of Ignite's eight incubation facilities, the country now has a strong entrepreneurial spirit that is fostering the growth of new businesses in nearly all sectors. He stated that start-ups supported by the country's national incubation centres got $20 million in investment last year from a variety of sources.

According to him, around 33 million people—or 75% more than the desired number—registered for courses in freelancing through Ignite's DigiSkills Programmes. By June 2022, the $290 million earned by DigiSkills-trained freelancers had added to the country's foreign exchange reserves.

In response to a query, he stated that there has been more than $1.2 billion in foreign direct investment in the telecom sector, while telecom income was Rs 605 billion in August 2018, which increased by Rs 89 billion to Rs 694 billion by December 2022, he added.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk