Urooj Niazi 
pakistan’s capital to get high speed internet under new plan
Islamabad is becoming a Smart City with fiber internet, EdTech, and more
Islamabad is poised to usher in the future for Pakistan while the federal government makes sweeping reforms in digital infrastructure, education, and healthcare. The vision is to transition the capital into a model smart city that integrates technology into everyday public services. After a pivotal meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology, Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, announced that the Prime Minister has moved forward with initiating this shift.
Fiber Internet for All Public Services
Among other changes, one of the biggest developments coming soon will be fiber internet access across Islamabad. All public schools, Basic Health Units (BHUs), hospitals, and police stations will be connected with high speed internet within the span of 6-8 months. Even public venues such as metro stations will offer free Wi-Fi, made possible through public-private partnerships.
Smart Learning with EdTech and AI
Education is also moving into the digital realm, with the government’s intention to support the digitalization of learning and make it more accessible to learners in the farthest reaches of the country by utilizing EdTech. By next year, children from Kindergarten to Grade 6 will start engaging with learning through AI tools, allowing kids in Islamabad a head start in the technological world.
A special committee has also been established to implement IT education as part of the national education curriculum.
With Pakistan moving digitally, the government also aims to train 500,000 youth in different advanced IT skills as follows:
- 200,000 youth will be trained by Google
- 300,000 youth will be trained by Huawei
- 200,000 youth will be trained by Microsoft
These youth training programs will help create pathways to harness the potential of youth and provide opportunities for the youth of Pakistan in a global digital economy.
