PM Shehbaz inaugurates Google’s office in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday inaugurated Google’s office in Pakistan, describing the development as an important milestone in the country’s digital transformation and its long-term partnership with the global technology company, Radio Pakistan reported.

Addressing the inauguration ceremony in Islamabad, the prime minister congratulated Google’s team and Pakistan’s technology community, saying the opening of the office would help create new opportunities in the digital sector and empower the country’s youth with modern tools, skills and technologies.

“Today marks a great day and an important step towards a long-term partnership,” Shehbaz said, adding that Pakistan’s collaboration with Google would contribute to a sector of growing importance in the modern economy.

Welcoming the Google delegation, led by Vice President Wilson L White, the prime minister said the partnership would continue to expand and open new avenues of cooperation in the digital sector.

White thanked the prime minister for hosting the company’s delegation and said Google had been investing in Pakistan for more than a decade.

He said Shehbaz’s ambition to transform Pakistan into a $30 billion IT export hub was closely aligned with Google’s goals.

According to White, Google had contributed more than Rs3.9 trillion to economic activity for Pakistani businesses and households over the past decade, while supporting more than 960,000 jobs.

He said Google was committed to supporting Pakistan’s IT export ambitions through investment in the country’s people, manufacturing and infrastructure for hardware exports, as well as local businesses.

White stressed that Pakistan’s digital transformation could only succeed with adequate investment in human resources.

He said Google had already helped more than one million Pakistanis acquire digital skills through its career certificates programme and initiatives involving schools and teachers to prepare young people for the digital economy.

Free Gemini subscriptions for students

The Google vice president also announced that the company would provide free one-year subscriptions to Google Gemini to all students in Pakistan.

He said the initiative would help young Pakistanis acquire modern digital skills and benefit from emerging technologies, further strengthening their participation in the country’s digital economy.