IT export is entirely different ball game.

IT is tragic, though not surprising at all, that Pakistan has remained on the peri- phery of global trade and commerce, especially when it comes to the domain of information technology (IT). The talented youth, professionals, and the nation at large continue to dream of the day when Pakistan will seize the moment and become a decent IT hub where innovation and technology seeding would take place. But, right now, this remains a dream.

The tragic part is not the dream, but the fact that it has remained a dream even when we have the potential to convert it into reality. We have computer literacy, relevant professionals, IT institutions and dedicated incubation centres and parks. All that is required is the will of a merit-worthy, competent leadership to achieve what we need.

And to achieve our goal, we need to take several steps, starting with building a strong IT infrastructure. A robust IT infrastructure is essential for a country to support software and IT development. This includes reliable internet connec- tivity, data centres, and cloud computing services. Pakistan needs to invest in building this infrastructure to attract IT businesses and foster a thriving IT ecosystem.

We need to invest heavily in education. Developing a strong education system that provides specialised training and skills in software and IT is critical to creating a talented workforce. Pakistan needs to invest in both formal education programmes and training programmes to ensure that the country has the necessary skills in abundance to compete globally.

There is a lot more that needs to be done to encourage entrepreneurship, like the government may encourage entrepreneurship by providing funding, mentorship and other support for start-ups in the IT sector. This can create a thriving ecosystem of start-ups and IT businesses that can help drive innovation and growth.

Open-source software can be a critically powerful tool for developing countries to build software solutions and IT services without...