IT, ITeS export remittances surge to $901.486m

TAHIR AMIN

ISLAMABAD: The country’s information technology (IT) and IT enabled Services (ITeS) export remittances have surged to $901.486 million at growth rate of 23.94 percent during the first nine months (July-March) of fiscal year 2019-20 compared to $727.353 million during the same period of last year.

The figures were released by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication here on Thursday.

IT & IT enabled services (ITes) export remittances comprising of computer services and call center services have surged to $901.486 million at growth rate of 23.94 percent over the first nine months (July-March) of fiscal year 2019-20 in comparison to $727.353 million during the same period of 2018-19, according to performance report of Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB), an organization under Ministry of IT and Telecommunication.

The IT & IT enabled services (ITes) export remittances, including telecommunication; computer and information services have surged to $1.054 billion at a growth rate of 19.91 percent over the first nine months (July-March) of fiscal year 2019-20 in comparison to $878.8 million during the same period of 2018-19.

The Ministry of IT and Telecommunication has directed the management of Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) to devise a comprehensive marketing plan and prepare strategy to accelerate growth of Pakistan’s IT sector.

On the direction of the Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication, Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication is making special efforts to promote IT exports and encourage IT companies.

The government has prepared an incentives package for promotion of information technology sector, envisaging increasing IT sector exports from the current around $1 billion to $10 billion by 2023.

Information Technology is emerging as a vital organ of national economy and the government is paying great deal of heed to promote IT sector, maintained in official documents. The incentives package includes various measures and is being designed after a thorough analysis of other important IT destinations of the region like Philippines, China, Bangladesh and India.

A summary to the Prime Minister is under process to encourage Pakistani products and to give preference to Pakistani software products by all ministries/divisions which would help in growth of IT business. Special Technology Zones will be developed in the country to promote IT/ITeS growth. In this regard, Public Sector Development Programm (PSDP) proposal of Rs 6.5 billion has been submitted to the Planning Commission by MoITT.