STZA awards COLABS with a Zone Enterprise license

COLABS, a co-working operator in Lahore, Pakistan, currently comprises a 1,000-member community of startups, SMEs, and freelancers. In its mission to create an empowering community of 100,000 entrepreneurs over five years, it has been awarded a Zone Enterprises license by Special Technology Zones Authority (STZA). COLABS is focused on developing the national and entrepreneurial ecosystem by setting world-class technology destinations across Pakistan.

This announcement was made during the launch ceremony of Lahore Technopolis by the Honorable Prime Minister of Pakistan. Omar Shah, CEO COLABS said: “Our aim is to facilitate the collaboration between the startup industry, academia, and the government for a tech-driven Pakistan. Bringing diversity through our partners and a wider network to transform COLABS into a hub for business growth, we aim to facilitate the development of new ideas, promote learning initiatives, inspire collaborations, provide a platform to network with the right people, and share success stories that can help co-create the ‘Future of Work’ and a resilient entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

STZA and COLABS foresee a significant impact in terms of the development of the technology ecosystem through setting up Special Technology Zones. With the government support to roll out Special Technology Zones nationally, Pakistan is bound to accelerate towards a journey of unprecedented growth by enabling job creation, fostering innovation, increasing the standards and quality of technology goods and services, and providing an opportunity for tech companies globally to invest in Pakistan.

The vision of COLABS is aligned with the mandate of STZA such as the enabling environment of collaborative research work and development, along with the development of Science & Technology Institutes and Technology Skill Development Centers. COLABS is an embodiment of a community with the idea of promoting tech startup ecosystems. The commercialization of technological knowledge will provide a robust transition of businesses to the ecosystem of prospective unicorn companies in Pakistan.