Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi Tuesday emphasized the need of providing support and conducive environment to start-ups through trainings, investor linkages and mentorship programs for the country’s socio-economic development.

He said that right policies had been put in place to enable young entrepreneurs to play their part in Pakistan’s prosperity, adding that the government was providing business loans to youth on easy terms and conditions under the Kamyab Jawan Program.

The President made these remarks during a briefing on National Incubation Centre (NIC) Islamabad. Secretary Information Technology & Telecom, Muhammad Sohail Rajput, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ignite, Asim Shahryar, Chief Digital Officer Jazz, Amir Ejaz, Project Director NIC Islamabad, Pervaiz Abbasi, representatives of National Information Technology Board (NITB) and other senior officials attended the meeting.

The President said that Pakistan needed to take advantage of its huge youth bulge by equipping them with modern IT based skills and creating a business-friendly environment in the country.

He highlighted the importance of training the youth in the field of IT, particularly in areas such as cyber-security and cyber-defence. He also underlined the need of making smart and data-driven decisions to make progress in all fields of life and to fulfill the requirements of the 4th Industrial Revolution.

Earlier, the President was briefed about various initiatives and performance of NIC. It was informed that NIC was providing a platform and required support to talented entrepreneurs for transforming their innovative ideas into a sustainable business.

It was apprised that during the last four years, NIC Islamabad had incubated 230 start-ups which had generated almost Rs 2 billion in revenues, besides creating more than 11,000 jobs. The President appreciated the efforts of NIC in promoting entrepreneurship in the country, especially the opportunities being provided to women and differently-abled in the NIC start-ups.