The ministry of information technology and telecom is set to launch a mega project of multi-billion-rupee IT Park project which will consist of more than 200 tech companies and create employment opportunities for 20,000 young IT professionals. Federal IT & Telecom Minster Syed Amin-ul-Haque would perform the project’s groundbreaking near Karachi airport on Monday (today). The IT minister said;
“Information Technology Park in Karachi will be a gateway to an innovative future. The project will promote research and development while giving a boost to IT exports,”
Officials claim that Ecnec (Executive Committee of the National Economic Council) approved the IT Park project in June 2021 with an estimated cost of Rs41 billion. Exim Bank, Korea will contribute Rs35bn while the remaining amount would be borne by the federal government under its public sector development program. The project is expected to be completed by June 2026.
“The purpose of the IT Park is to provide a place where innovative businesses could develop and prosper,”
The IT Park Karachi will be an 11-story self-contained building having covered areas of 106,449 square meters. It would provide office space to some 225 startups and small-to-medium enterprises, local and international companies, and other ancillary facilities like testing laboratories, classrooms, an industry-academia linkage center, and an auditorium
the minister said.
He said that the establishment of the park would be a step towards achieving Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s vision to bring a world-class IT infrastructure to Karachi city.
It will make the city a center of excellence for Information technology. He said that the technology sector has been playing its role in developing and strengthening Pakistan’s economy. The IT park will provide employment opportunities, promote research, and development and enhance IT exports, he hoped.
It will offer a platform for the industry and local universities to establish synergies. It will also attract international business collaboration and global IT companies as anchor tenants and investors. The minister said the park would improve the provision of workspace and allied infrastructure facilities for IT and IT-enabled services (ITeS) companies and promote the growth of the IT industry.
Another important technological improvement news coming out of Karachi is that the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) is launching a digital one-stop portal where Karachi residents can get all services and order tickets for the Safari Park, Karachi Zoo, and Landhi Zoo with a single click.
Municipal Commissioner KMC, Syed Afzal Zaidi, revealed this while attending a meeting of the organization’s heads of the departments and other officers at KMC’s central office. He continued that the online portal will be paired with a mobile application, and will also eliminate the need to visit offices for information or complaints. Zaidi added that the project is being launched with the assistance of the provincial government.
He further revealed that the data related to utility taxes, as well as any shops or markets under KMC will also be available through the portal, in addition to the corporation’s sports complexes, their membership system, and events that can be conducted there. Similarly, the protocol for any organization wishing to use government premises for commercial purposes is also accessible through the online portal. The site is now connected to 140 departments of local government and 70 within the KMC.