He was addressing the 7th Information Technology Board meeting here at Chief Minister House Peshawar. The board had detailed discussion on the minutes of previous meeting and made a number of decisions regarding promoting the concept of self employment through IT related knowledge, six months stipend to the youth, support to introduce Durshal project in Peshawar, Mardan, Swat, Haripur, Swabi and Bannu while it was ready to be started in (Makanbagh) Swat.
It also approved training for the 250 educated youth in China under the Rashakai Technology City Project. Students would be sent to different Chinese Industrial Parks and the board would advertise the plan to attract educated youth for this training. The meeting also Okayed free-lancing project in the IT field including certification courses, establishment of IT Labs in Schools and the IT related education at 25 sites throughout the province. The internet facility would be available for facilitation of youth in their business.
The meeting also approved the establishment of telemedicine centers, KP-Cyber emergency response centre, Technical and Financial Feasibility Study of Citizen facilitation Center as these were already cleared by technical committee. It also okayed the digital complex in Peshawar and mini tech estate Abbottabad and the Technology City at Rashakai Special Economic Zone.
It also approved the 26km dark fiber on the bus Rapid Transit route in Peshawar for the facilitation of commuters. It also agreed to hire a professional for the KP-Cyber Emergency Response Center.
The meeting also approved the interconnectivity of different public sector entities for conversion of data for the facilitation of general public. Addressing the participants of the meeting, the CM said that we are living in the digital world but unfortunately we are laggard to innovation. We have to be accustomed to the new knowledge of being digitally connected, digital skilled, digitally growing as the world economy has already transformed and we are being connected to the world economy in the backdrop of CPEC therefore we have no other option but to prepare our youth exposing them to innovation to meet the future needs of the region brought along by CPEC.
Khattak said his government has already framed a strategy for the smooth transformation from primitive knowledge approach to the innovative knowledge approach. Today the world is open to innovation and we need to sensitize our educated youth developing and expanding their capacity to adapt to the new aged demand that is the realistic and prudent posturing to get our due share.
The chief minister directed to prepare rules of business for the IT Board and tasked Sahibzada Saeed, Head of Strategic Support Unit to follow it. The CM also agreed to the regularization of already hired employees adding that the board was autonomous and free in its decision making process. He said that he wished a minimum role for the government in the affairs of all autonomous boards and authorities.
The CM assured all-out support to the IT board adding that the government had done everything for financially supporting the board and now it is the turn of the board to emerge as the revenue generation entity. He also advised the board to prepare its future plans and engagements with full preparedness and bring them to the next meeting of the board.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2017