With a young population, Pakistan is positioning its youth as drivers of digital growth and innovation
The Prime Minister stated that 79% of the funds in the relief program were transferred seamlessly and transparently through digital wallets. PHOTO: APP
In a world reshaped by the Fourth Industrial Revolution, digital transformation is no longer an outcome; it is the engine behind national resilience, economic competitiveness and inclusive development.
For Pakistan, home to one of the world’s largest youth populations and burgeoning digital talent, harnessing this revolution isn’t just hopeful—it’s imperative. At this historic juncture, Pakistan is charting a strategic path to digital leadership with a clear focus on youth skills, technology adoption and integration into the global digital economy.
Pakistan’s information technology (IT) and IT-enabled services sector has rapidly transitioned from a peripheral contributor to an economic pillar. In the fiscal year 2024-2025, Pakistan recorded a record high of $3.8 billion in IT exports, reflecting sustained growth and global demand for digital services. This marked an 18% year-on-year increase and underscored the strategic importance of technology services in stabilizing the economy and generating foreign exchange.
Within this growth, the freelance segment increased by almost 90%, showing that Pakistan’s young professionals are competing strongly in global digital markets. The country is also among the top five global freelance economies, powered by a dynamic pool of English-speaking talent and adaptable digital workers.
These findings place Pakistan’s digital exports alongside traditional trade sectors, reflecting the strategic shift towards knowledge-intensive economic activity. But while the momentum is real, Pakistan’s global positioning requires deeper structural strengthening, particularly in innovation ecosystems and digital competitiveness.
In terms of global innovation benchmarks, Pakistan is on an upward trajectory, but with considerable scope for ambition. In the Global Innovation Index 2024, which evaluates economies on innovation inputs (e.g. infrastructure, human capital, research) and outputs (knowledge and creative outputs), Pakistan ranked 91st out of 133 economies. Among lower-middle-income countries, this places Pakistan above several peers but behind several regional neighbors whose policies have successfully integrated education, R&D and private sector linkages into national innovation systems.
This ranking highlights a critical insight: talent and results are emerging, but investment in research, infrastructure and human capital must accelerate to close the gap with global innovators. In parallel, global analysis shows that countries with advanced digital economies, led by Switzerland, the US and Singapore, continue to benefit from robust digital competitiveness ecosystems spanning talent, infrastructure and forward-looking regulatory frameworks.
Global institutions emphasize that digital skills and infrastructure are central to future growth. The World Bank identifies digital transformation as essential for participation in the global digital economy, emphasizing inclusive access to reliable internet and the development of digital skills as means of productivity and competitiveness.
Recognizing this, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s vision for Pakistan’s digital future is bold, multidimensional and youth-centric. It reframes technology as a state capacity, not just a sector. The strategy emphasizes scaling digital skills, particularly in high-impact areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, cybersecurity, data analytics and blockchain technologies; prioritizing broadband connectivity, cloud access and next-generation networks essential for participation in global digital markets; and aligning regulation with global best practices to attract investment, maintain privacy and security standards, and promote entrepreneurship.
AI is at the center of this vision. As the AI revolution deepens global divides – with advanced economies pulling ahead in research and preparedness – the opportunity for developing nations lies in strategic adoption and tailored skills development. Recent global analysis warns that uneven AI readiness could exacerbate inequalities: without proactive measures in regulation, education and infrastructure, developing countries risk being left behind in this critical technological shift.
Pakistan’s greatest comparative advantage is its demographic profile. Almost two-thirds of the population is under the age of 30, offering a large reservoir of potential digital talent. This is not just a statistic; it is a mandate for public order.
Under the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme, youth empowerment is now integrated with the national digital strategy. It’s not about handouts; it is about enabling large-scale economic participation through digital skills training and certification in line with international standards; freelancing and micro-enterprise support that connects young professionals directly to global clients; startup incubation and scale-up funding that nurtures innovative ideas for export-oriented ventures; and public-private partnerships that integrate youth talent into new technology sectors.
This approach has already generated measurable impact: thousands of young Pakistanis have been trained in digital domains, leading to new income streams, job creation and cross-border collaborations. Pakistan’s journey towards digital leadership is not without its challenges. Innovation ecosystem metrics highlight gaps in research spending, infrastructure and institutional frameworks. But these are challenges that can be transformed into strategic priorities when combined with political will and targeted investment.
The future of national competitiveness lies in our ability to reframe education systems around future skills; encourage research and innovation ecosystems integrated with industry needs; and align regulation with global AI governance standards to unlock investment and trust. Pakistan’s youth are not only beneficiaries of digital transformation; they are its architects.
As Pakistan strives for an inclusive, resilient and globally competitive digital economy, international cooperation will be essential. We seek equal access to knowledge, partnerships in research and innovation, and common frameworks for AI governance that reflect both global standards and local contexts.
The message is clear: Pakistan’s digital agenda is a youth agenda, a growth agenda and an innovation agenda that fits global collaboration. Together with the global community – from the UN to industry leaders at the WEF and innovation coalitions at tech summits – Pakistan stands ready to contribute meaningfully to shaping a digital future that is inclusive, prosperous and shared.
The author is a member of the National Assembly and contact person for the Prime Minister’s youth programme.
