By the end of this year, the Pakistan Software Export Board plans to open ten software technology parks.
The initiative intends to establish a network of technology parks in Pakistan’s secondary and tertiary cities and towns by converting old or defunct office buildings, industries, and warehouses into IT-enabled office space for IT & ITeS enterprises at cheap rates.
The goal of constructing software technology parks in existing building facilities in Pakistan’s secondary and tertiary cities, such as Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, is to provide cost-effective, cheap office space and reliable ICT infrastructure for IT SMEs and startups.
Buildings have been spotted in Gujrat, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Jamshoro, Abbottabad, Mangora Sawat, and Khuzdar, according to PSEB. In Manhesra and Quetta, STPs are now being established.
The Pakistan Software Export Board and the Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering, and Management Sciences have signed a memorandum of understanding for the creation of a software technology park at the university. In May, companies will be invited to see the area and provide input at a project open house. Following that, IT businesses will settle on a site and a contract will be awarded for the available space.
The project was started, according to PSEB, to provide state-of-the-art IT sector facilities, as well as uninterruptible high-speed internet services and training to the region’s young IT professionals under one roof. IT Park will give space, modern facilities, training, and guidance to private IT enterprises and professionals in order to help them grow their businesses. During the first 12 months after the establishment of the particular STP and for the duration of the project life, inhabitant companies will receive a 25% rental discount as well as free internet access.
These STPs would assist improve IT exports by bridging gaps in technology and infrastructure access in secondary and tertiary cities.