ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal stated on Tuesday the country needs to prepare for a new era of the knowledge economy.

While speaking as the chief guest at the seminar titled, “Quantum Cryptography Insight” held at the National Science and Technology Park on the NUST Islamabad campus, he added that the knowledge economy requires world-class human resources and creative minds to find solutions for the coming age of technological disruptions.

The minister also emphasised the importance of artificial intelligence and quantum computing in the modern era of digital computing and appreciated NUST for organising this industry-academic collaborative event, which also had international participation.

Prof Ahsan Iqbal particularly praised the work done by the National Centre of Artificial Intelligence (NCAI) in the digital transformation of Pakistan, taking Pakistani home-grown products into the market, and showcasing the country at the international level.

He advised the industry to take advantage of the National Centres of Technology created by his government under Vision 2025, which are doing wonders in product development, HR training, as well as applied research and development.

He also stressed the importance of keeping up with modern trends to compete in the international market. The minister cited the glorious past of Muslim countries where knowledge and education flourished and traced the roots of this development in the Holy Quran.

The minister also expressed his resolve to turn Pakistan’s universities of engineering and technology into a global brand and pledged his support for further development of the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), which is already Pakistan’s top university in the prestigious QS Global rankings.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023