LAHORE, Jan 29 : The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has organized First LCCI IT Freelancing Awards 2024 which was a part of its untiring efforts for the promotion of IT Sector in the country.
Governor Punjab Muhammad Blighur Rehman was the chief guest while LCCI President Kashif Anwar, Senior Vice President Zafar Mahmood Chaudhry, Vice President Adnan Khalid Butt, Convenor Standing Committee for IT Abdul Wahab Ahmed and others participated in the event.
Speaking on this occasion, Punjab Governor Muhammad Balighur Rahman said that it is a good to see that a good work has started, the journey of thousands of miles begins with a single step, this is another honor of Kashif Anwar.
He said that IT is very important in today’s world. It will increase jobs but will change their nature. Those who are doing better in IT are also showing the way to others. He said that there are many economic models in the world where facilities have been given to business and private sector and it has been successful.
He said that IT has made communication easier and the whole world is connected. “Our character leads to our development.” He said that Pakistan is advancing rapidly in the world of IT. All developing countries have adopted policies, which should be analyzed through data, he added.
He said that there is a lot of potential in IT sector. He said that the governor is also the chancellor of the universities. He has sent the directive of e-rozgar in universities. He said that laptops were given to the students with a transparency, the fruits of which are in front of us today.
He said that people should be educated on merit, adding, “After getting the laptop, our ranking improved and freelancing increased.” Umar Saif is bringing PayPal and other apps to the country for safe payment which is a great move. Freelancers are doing great work. The biggest potential is young people who are doing this work, he added.
LCCI President Kashif Anwar said that the 21st century belongs to technological advancement. Particularly, digitalization has revolutionized almost every aspect of life.
He said that all countries throughout the world are working to promote modern technology in accordance with the fourth industrial revolution to become an active part of the global digital economy worth more than 10 trillion dollars.
The LCCI President said that the Lahore Chamber has been engaged in promoting the IT industry for a long time and for this purpose LCCI organizes IT Awards on annual basis to acknowledge best performance of IT companies. IT Freelancers Awards have been organized to encourage IT freelancers in which those IT freelancers are being honored who are earning valuable foreign exchange for the country through IT services, he added.
Kashif Anwar said that Pakistan’s IT industry is developing and today it has become an important contributor to the national economy. He said that according to the data of the Board of Investment, the share of IT in Pakistan’s GDP is around one percent.
He said that according to an estimate, there are 20 IT companies in Pakistan and more than 5 lakh IT professionals are associated with this sector. Apart from this, there are more than 20 IT parks in the country. He said that Pakistan ranks 4th in terms of IT freelancing worldwide.
The LCCI President said that because of the government’s efforts, PayPal payments will now start coming to our freelancers’ accounts through third-party wallets. Kashif Anwar said that the government has issued 50 percent dollar retention accounts for IT companies, after which it has become possible for them to keep 50 percent of their remittances in foreign currency. After this decision, a 13 percent increase in Pakistan’s IT exports has been seen in just thirty days.
He added that the government has recently arranged IT training for 100,000 students, which will generate an additional $2.5 billion per year for the country. Along with this, the government has launched Pakistan Startup Fund with 2 billion rupees, which will boost investment. About ten thousand e-employment centers are being established where one million IT freelancers will be able to work and with the help of their potential, an annual income of 10 billion dollars will be ensured, he added.
He said that IT freelancers earned 400 million dollars in the financial year 2023. The way these young people are fulfilling the needs of international clients, the day is not far when Pakistan will get billions of dollars in foreign exchange because of them. He mentioned that India is earning more than $300 billion from the exports of IT services.
He said that Lahore Chamber continues to guide its members about modern IT through awareness sessions and training. He said that instead of working on the traditional sectors of the economy, “we need to promote and provide facilities to sectors with unlimited potential like IT”. He congratulated the winners of Lahore Chamber IT Freelancing Awards.
Senior Vice President Zafar Mahmood Chaudhry said that Lahore Chamber has done a lot for exports and industry. Now it is playing its role for IT sector. “Our neighboring countries are earning a lot of foreign exchange from IT. In our country, around two lakh companies and freelancers are exporting but these numbers are low. Companies should bring their foreign exchange into the country,” he said.
Vice President Adnan Khalid Butt said that the first IT Freelancing Award is a milestone. It is hoped that the award holders will continue to play their role. Convener Standing Committee Abdul Wahab said that the role of Lahore Chamber is very important for the promotion of IT. This is the first such event in the history of Pakistan which has been organized by Lahore Chamber. SIFC is also important in this regard. People from all over Pakistan have been selected for these awards, all of them have earned 5 million dollars foreign exchange in the last year, he added.
Later, Governor Punjab Muhammad Balighur Rehman, along with LCCI President Kashif Anwar, distributed the awards and sponsor shields. Ali Raza Received award in Al Chatbot/APPs, Khalid Rasheed in Cartoon Character Artist, Usman Ali Awan in E-Book Publishing, Sadia Kouser in Digital Marketing, Hafiz Waqas Haider in Game Development, Sidra Sarfraz in Leads Generation, Fozia Attaur Rehman in Mobile App Development, Aimen Younus in Packaging and Label Design, Nauman Ali Akhtar in Search Engine Optimization, Azka Mahmood in UI/UX Design+Graphic Design, Muhammad Umer Rafique in Social Media Strategist, Ahsan Iqbal in Video Animation, Faisal Mubasher in Video Content Creator, Shahrukh Ahmad in Virtual Reality Expert, Nouman Khizar in Content Writing, Muhammad Atif Hanif in Web Development, Umai Laila in Rising E-Commerce Entrepreneur, Humaira Zaidee in Visionary New Comer Emerging Talent, Hafiz Ahmad Ali received award in Amazon, Wall Mart and other Market Places.
The Governor presented special appreciation awards to LCCI President Kashif Anwar, Senior Vice President Zafar Mahmood Chaudhry, Vice President Adnan Khalid Butt and Convener LCCI Standing Committee on IT Infrastructure Development and Training Abdul Wahab Ahmad.
Shehryar Amir Turab Ali of Stars Pvt Ltd, Wahab Younas of PNY Training, Muhammad Uzair Arshad of EMBLEM Technologies, Sarosh Naseem of NJ Dynamic Solutions received Platinum Sponsor, Muhammad Ammar Ghaffar of ABFA Technologies, Rukhshanda Jabeen of Co Build Pvt Ltd, Muddassir Naeem Ch of Peak Solutions, Farhat Munawar Bajwa of Bajwa Pharmaceuticals received Gold Sponsor. Faraz Haider of The Resource Management, Muhammad Azeem Akram of AlphaSquad Technologies, Muddassar Ismail of Sandy APPs and Mudassir Malik of Apps Genii Technologies received Silver Sponsor.
