Pakistan, Google sign MoU to light up $30bn digital roadmap

According to Mettis Link News, Pakistan and Google have formalised a memorandum of understanding, a deal that brings Google closer to opening an office in the country. Zarar Hashim Khan, Secretary of the Ministry of Information Technology, and David Weller, Google's senior policy director for Southeast Asia, signed the document in Islamabad, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif present. Federal cabinet members and US Chargé d'Affaires Natalie Baker also took part in the event.

Under the arrangement, Google will widen its Career Certificates scheme in Pakistan and aims to award 150,000 certificates this year to build digital skills among young people. Students in Pakistan will receive no-cost use of Google's AI products such as Gemini and Google AI Plus. The two parties also plan a joint AI Centre of Excellence in Islamabad to train local talent to international standards.

On the public side, the deal allows the Federal Board of Revenue to use AI-driven data analytics within its digitisation drive, and brings AI into farming for crop monitoring and forecasting. A joint task force made up of government officials, Google representatives and other stakeholders will draft a roadmap, pinpoint barriers and identify growth openings for the sector. The arrangement is linked to the Prime Minister's goal of growing IT exports and the wider digital economy to $30 billion by 2030.