Islamabad, 16 June 2025: 300,000 Students in IT Skills, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level meeting aimed at strengthening Pakistan’s IT training ecosystem and expanding digital skills among the country’s youth.
Emphasizing the urgent need for a forward-looking digital transformation, the Prime Minister directed stakeholders to ensure that Pakistani youth are equipped with practical and employment-focused IT skills capable of driving change at the grassroots level.
The premier reiterated that Pakistan must develop a resilient and innovative ICT infrastructure to emerge as a regional tech powerhouse.
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He further stated that local companies should be provided with a skilled workforce aligned with international standards, enabling them to enhance foreign exchange earnings.
Clear terms of reference (TORs) for hiring consultancy services have been finalized, and timelines for implementation were ordered to be defined and strictly followed.
The Prime Minister underscored that training programs should be constructive and globally relevant, turning young Pakistanis into competent professionals ready to thrive in international markets.
Reaffirming the government’s commitment, he said, “Our most valuable national asset is our talented youth, and it is imperative to invest in their digital future.”
The Ministry of Federal Education, the Higher Education Commission (HEC), NAVTTC, and the Ministry of IT have been tasked with incorporating IT training across schools, colleges, and universities. Additionally, digital training will be a core feature of summer camps during the current school break.
In the briefing, it was highlighted that substantial progress has been made toward rolling out an advanced IT training system. The TORs for engaging consulting firms are in final stages, with Huawei’s collaboration enabling the training of over 20,000 students so far.
Impressively, Pakistani trainees secured the top three global positions in three IT categories in a Huawei-sponsored international competition featuring over 200,000 participants from across the globe.
300,000 Students in IT Skills, the program also targets an additional 80,000 students, who will be trained through HEC-Huawei partnership initiatives, covering not only major cities but also underserved regions such as Balochistan and Turbat via online modules.
Plans are underway to train 50,000 professional instructors in advanced technologies across Islamabad, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Kashmir, ensuring the delivery of quality instruction.
Furthermore, integration of these programs into bachelor’s degrees and the launch of artificial intelligence (AI) modules will enable the government to train 300,000 students in IT skills nationwide.
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In addition, 146,000 children will be introduced to foundational IT training during the summer break, in a joint initiative by the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of IT, and Huawei. Separately, 2,000 young individuals will undergo specialized short-term IT courses under the Prime Minister’s Youth Program to fast-track them toward employment.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif emphasized that all initiatives must be time-bound and completed without delay, as Pakistan works to position itself as a global contender in the digital economy.
