Minister urges students to learn digital skills for future economy

Islamabad:As students from Islamabad’s government schools were awarded certificates on Wednesday after completing Huawei’s Summer ICT Training Programme, IT and Telecom Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja stressed the need to equip youth, particularly girls, with skills for the country’s expanding digital economy

The certificate distribution ceremony was held at the Ministry of IT and Telecommunication under the Prime Minister’s ICT Training Initiative in collaboration with Huawei Technologies Pakistan

Minister Khawaja interacted with the students at the ceremony, heard about their experiences and took an interest in the skills they acquired during the programme. She congratulated the students on completing the training and urged them to build on their newly acquired knowledge

The minister said the government, under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s vision, was focused on providing young Pakistanis, particularly girls, with the skills and opportunities needed to contribute to the country’s digital transformation and compete in the global digital economy

She said the importance of technology was no longer limited to the IT sector, as digital tools and emerging technologies were reshaping a wide range of fields, including education, healthcare, business, finance, agriculture and public services

“Whatever field our young people choose, technology will increasingly be part of their professional journey. Our responsibility is to ensure that they have the skills to use it, create with it and eventually lead in it,” she said

The minister encouraged the students to explore emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing, software development and data science and apply their knowledge to practical challenges

“Pakistan has immense talent. We want our young people not only to consume technology, but to create it, innovate with it and offer their talent to the world,” she said.The minister also urged the students to share their knowledge with their classmates and encourage other girls to take an interest in technology and explore opportunities in the digital economy

Six students received certificates from the minister for completing multiple Huawei certifications. They included Ayesha Zaib of Class 9, who completed 33 certifications; Hifsa Waqas of Class 12, 28; Hadia Zarnab of Class 9, 28; Laiba Nadeem of Class 12, 27; Sajafah Farooq of Class 9, 27; and Ayesha Mujtaba of Class 7, 26

Khawaja also appreciated Huawei Technologies Pakistan and the school administrations for providing the students with practical exposure to industry-relevant technologies and internationally recognised certifications

Ahmed Bilal Masood, CEO AI and Cloud at Huawei Pakistan, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to supporting Pakistan’s digital transformation and developing the next generation of ICT professionals through industry-relevant training and practical exposure

Concluding the interaction, the minister told the students to regard the training as the beginning of a longer learning journey. She encouraged them to remain curious, continue developing their skills and use technology to devise solutions to real-world problems

Source: www.thenews.pk