Ijaz Kakakhel Islamabad
With 10 years total tax exemption, the government is going to establish Special Technology Zones Authority (STZA), which would help in jobs creation and achieving excel in technology base export enhancement.
The Authority creation would help to attract renowned world class companies, establishment of Research and Development (R&D) centers of these companies.
The authority would help trigger the growth of scientific and technological ecosystem in the country.
Chairman of the STZA Amer Ahmed Hashmi expressed these views while briefing the National Assembly Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat while MNA Kishwer Zehra was on chair.
The STZA had specific mandate to facilitate the development of Special Technology Zones (STZs) in the country.
“These STZs will feature some of the leading global high-tech enterprises with major national tech companies, research institutes, new-technology-based firms, startups, business support services, and convening community facilities, representing model collaborative spaces for innovation and entrepreneurship promotion,” he maintained.
“These zones will help increase high-tech exports of Pakistan and facilitate technology transfer from major global science and technology hub,” he added.
He said that under the initiative new industrial research parks, high-tech development zones, innovation districts and special economic zones would be set up as similar initiatives had led to rapid industrialization in countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea and now they had become the global best practice for high-speed growth and development for any country.
Through this initiative, if the government able to attract big companies like GE etc and establish its R&D the result would be enhanced Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Hashmi maintained.
He also claimed that Pakistan has about three decades behind in the development of hi-tech fields and expressed the hope that the Authority would help the country.
