President for giant leap in digital technology to improve economy.

ISLAMABAD -- President Dr Arif Alvi on Thursday said that a big leap in digital technology is important for Pakistan to directly improve its economy and make progress in public service delivery.

The President stressed that by leveraging digital technology, the country could explore advanced avenues of business in the revolutionalised world. Addressing here at a seminar on 'Digital System for public welfare: weaknesses and remedies,' the President said Pakistan needed to make early decisions in technology and keep pace with the fast-changing world. President Alvi said the country needed a 'full-throttle acceleration' on expanding digitalisation in areas of public service delivery, including online banking. Lauding the talent of the nation, he said the country was 'standing on the gold mine of people.' he said learning knowledge about FinTech (financial technology) and artificial intelligence could prove as a catalyst to progress. he said taking initiative in learning and getting the edge in technology was of foremost importance. In this regard, he emphasised working on intellectual ideas and early decisions on implementing digitalisation strategy in diverse areas.

President Alvi, however, stressed that besides digitalisation, the stakeholders needed to guide the consumers not to fall victim to online scams. he said scams could not be averted completely, however, their proportion to the delivery of services was important. he emphasised controlling online scams and frauds through continuous effort, including targeted messaging. he highlighted how effectively the 130 million targeted cellular texts on early prevention of breast cancer successfully relayed a powerful message among the general public. The President said the people had already adopted cell phone technology, and there was a need to guide them about the benefits of advanced technology. he said that older people were more susceptible to online fraud and needed to be educated about...