E-governance council to be established in Pakistan for policy formulation

Just recently, Pakistani government planned to issue eVisa to the investors and now it seems, the country is moving a step further in the field of the technology, as talks for an e-government are set in motion.

Nasser Khan Janjua, the National Security Advisor Lt General (Retd) said during a closing ceremony that Pakistan is in need of excelling and developing an e-governance council policy formulation according to the globally acceptable parameters. The ceremony, “Cyber Secure Pakistan – Policy Framework” was arranged by CGSS and was held in Islamabad on Tuesday.

The seminar highlighted the importance of emerging technologies in the cyber world. It aimed to create an awareness about the threats concerning the national security due to the evolvement in the cyberspace and therefore, to plan a consolidated cybersecurity policy for the country.

The advisor said, “Pakistan is engulfed in traditional threats and insecurities due to which the new emerging threats have been ignored hence, we have to do better more than ever before,”

The ‘emerging threats’ are due to the growing digitalization of the cyberspace and are pertaining to the country’s defense and security, he expressed.

He added that the whole sphere had been endangered and it was very important to get out of the consumer market and venture into the new dimensions.

Mr. Nasser further stated, “Excessive use of internet has put our security under the threat. Due to our increasing alliance on the internet, cybersecurity policy is becoming the need of the hour.”

Moreover, Lieutenant General Muhammad Zahir Ul Islam (Retd) – Chairman CGSS, in his opening remarks stated that a well-articulated legislation must be passed by the government that would provide a legal framework for law enforcement and intelligence agencies to operate under. Likewise, Secretary National Security Division, Syed Iftikhar Hussain Babar also called attention to the significance of the cybersecurity in his opening address.

He mentioned that the danger of the cyber warfare is real and protecting the data is as important as protecting ourselves. The government and many private institutions have been working in this regard. Before the world moves a step further in the cyberspace, Pakistan must secure a firm position in this particular field and formulate its state policy accordingly.

Lastly, Mudassar Hussain – Member Telecom, Ministry of Information Technology, at the ceremony said, “the relevant departments had been working on the strategy for cybersecurity, but due to lack of collaboration between these institutions, we had failed to develop a consolidated cybersecurity policy.”

Adding on, “We must devise a strategy which the users have faith in and the user must be aware of the steps he can take to ensure its own security. We also need to work on a model for international collaboration. This is a collective initiative which is being delayed due to non-consensus of all the relevant departments.”

All in all, establishing an e-government in the country is indeed a great notion from the officials, as we should be prepared for the underlying national threats from the emerging cyber world.

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