Construction of the main building of Information Technology (IT) Park in Islamabad will start this month, officials of the Ministry of Science and Technology have confirmed. The Information Technology (IT) Park being established Federal capital would generate at least 15,000 jobs for IT experts, students, and professionals.
ll essential provisions have been made, and the tendering procedure is nearing completion, according to the details. The building’s design has already been authorized by the Capital Development Authority (CDA), and MoITT has also received approval from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The foundation stone of the park was laid on Chak Shahzad, last year by Minister for IT and Telecommunication Syed Amin Ul Haque, aimed at fulfilling Digital Pakistan Vision. The project would be completed with a total cost of Rs13.72 billion, an official in the Ministry revealed.
All electrical connections, drain channels, and procurement work has been finished. The construction of a boundary wall and the payment of land taxes have already been completed. All work has been completed on the Pakistani side, and contract awarding is underway on the Korean side, with completion expected in the coming weeks.
The foundation of the idea of making an IT Park in Islamabad was laid on 26 May 2021 by Minister of IT & Telecom (MoITT), Syed Amin Ul Haq, and Ambassador of the Republic of Korea, H.E Suh Sangpyo, at Chak Shahzad.
IT Park Islamabad will consist of twelve stories (2 underground and 10 above) and will stretch over an area of 66,893 square meters. It will provide office space to over 120 startups, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and ancillary facilities like testing laboratories, classrooms, industry-academia linkage center, auditorium, etc. The MoITT is developing IT Park Islamabad with financial assistance from Exim Bank Korea. The total cost of the project is $88.8 million, of which, $76.3 million will be provided by South Korea and $12.5 million will be covered by Pakistan.
Islamabad IT Park will initially provide office space to around 120 start-ups and small to medium enterprises and other ancillary facilities like testing laboratories, classrooms, an industry-academia linkage center, an auditorium, etc. Ministry of IT is currently working with Pakistan Software Export Board was working to establish software technology parks in Quetta, Gwadar, Faisalabad, Bannu, Swat, Mardan, Sukkur, and Hyderabad.
The IT Park will not only help to alleviate the IT sector’s infrastructure constraint, but it will also help to allow technology transfer through academia-industry collaboration, assist technology commercialization, boost research and development, and provide economic value.
It will improve IT exports and industrial competitiveness while also bringing in federal direct investment in the IT sector. During the construction phase, it will employ more than 5,000 people directly and indirectly. After completion, it will generate an additional 5,000 direct and indirect jobs.
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