Digital Transformation Key to Pakistan’s Economic Future: Shaza
ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 7th Sep, 2026)
Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, has stated that Pakistan believes the 21st century belongs to emerging nations capable of leveraging digital technology to create wealth and shape their destiny.
Addressing the LEAP 2026 conference on “How We Built a Digital Nation”, she explained that Pakistan is constructing its national digital stack utilizing open-source technology. The country aims to share this digital stack free of charge with frontier and emerging nations once completed. Shaza emphasized that digital technology should empower countries to transition from modernization to wealth creation and greater economic autonomy.
She noted that Pakistan has shifted its focus away from pursuing "fancy big projects" towards establishing robust digital foundations. Over the past two years, the government has introduced significant legislation, including the Digital Nation Pakistan Act and the National AI Policy. These measures aim to support the technology ecosystem while ensuring ethical, security, and sovereignty safeguards.
Shaza highlighted right-of-way reforms implemented to promote fiber connectivity and broadband adoption:
"In a nutshell, what we did was the grunt work for very strong, solid foundations for a digital era."
She explained that the government initiated its efforts by listening to investors, industry leaders, young people, and international partners. Identifying digital connectivity as the initial challenge, Shaza stressed that reliable, high-speed internet is essential for digital development across the nation. Spectrum availability had been a significant bottleneck, but Pakistan recently conducted the world's largest spectrum auction, offering 480 megahertz. The rollout of these initiatives is well underway, with two new submarine cables and substantial progress on fiber reforms.
Policy continuity emerged as the second major challenge, which Shaza attributed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's establishment of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). This council, headed by the prime minister and supported by Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, ensures policy stability.
Business competitiveness, particularly for technology companies facing taxation difficulties, was identified as a third challenge. To address this, Pakistan has created special technology zones offering tax-free status for the next 10 years. Additionally, the country is working to introduce international payment gateways for its youth and expanding sovereign computing.