ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) - Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday said the government was determined to complete the establishment of Information Technology (IT) Park in the Federal Capital on a fast-track basis.
He expressed this resolve while chairing a progress-review meeting of the project, attended by Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Ambassador of Korea to Pakistan Park Kijun besides senior officials from the Ministries of Planning and IT, a news release said.
Ahsan Iqbal emphasised the Prime Minister’s vision for the swift advancement of the project to transform Islamabad into a regional hub for IT innovation. He stressed the importance of parallel development strategies to ensure the project’s accelerated progress, setting the foundation for a sustainable digital economy in Pakistan.
IT Park Islamabad is being developed in Islamabad, covering a substantial area of 66,893 square meters with two basements, a ground floor, and nine additional floors. It is being financed through a partnership between the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) of the Korean EXIM Bank and the Government of Pakistan’s Public Sector Development Program (PSDP).
The project, valued at $88.384 million, includes $76.310 million from the Korean EXIM Bank as a loan, with the remaining $12.476 million funded through the PSDP. This state-of-the-art facility will support IT companies and start-ups comprehensively, driving innovation and enabling Pakistan to compete in the global IT sector. Key features of the IT Park Islamabad include:
The Islamabad IT Park would have 120 Office Spaces for IT and IT-enabled service companies an Incubation Center with 15 offices dedicated to supporting startups, a Business Support Center providing legal, marketing, and financial services, Industry-Academia Linkage Center fostering collaboration between academia and the IT industry and Tier III Data Center with uninterrupted power supply.
In addition, the IT Park would also have R&D IT Labs, Auditorium, and Virtual Classrooms supporting research and training. Ambassador Park Kijun reiterated Korea’s commitment to collaborating closely with Pakistan on this landmark project.
He noted Korea’s focus on establishing partnerships to support Pakistan’s IT sector and exploring avenues for IT product exports. Planning Minister Prof. Ahsan Iqbal proposed establishing Gandhara IT University in Taxila in line with the vision of promoting education and innovation.
As part of this initiative, he said Pakistan was prepared to offer free land for the university’s campus, welcoming one of Korea’s top universities to establish a presence in Pakistan.
This endeavor seeks to revive the ancient legacy of Gandhara and transform Taxila into a modern center of learning, marking a new era for educational excellence in the region.