THE Federal Cabinet, which met in Islamabad on Wednesday with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the chair, took several key decisions, including the approval of Hajj Policy for 2026, National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy and the Green Building Code of Pakistan.
As per new policy, total Hajj quota of 179,210 will now be distributed with two-thirds allocated to the government’s regular scheme, while the private sector’s share has been reduced from 50pc to 33pc. Each private Hajj operator or group will be required to manage a minimum of 2,000 pilgrims. Pakistan’s National AI Policy 2025 aims to build a robust, inclusive AI ecosystem, democratizing access, improving public services, cybersecurity and driving economic growth.
The approval of the Hajj Policy at this advanced stage is a step in the right direction as it will ensure availability of abundant timeframe for completion of different formalities and complete the entire process and relevant arrangements in a meticulous manner to the satisfaction of the intending pilgrims. This is understandable in view of the fiasco this year when thousands of those who applied through the private Hajj groups could not realize their dream of performing this religious duty due to lethargy and technical hitches and even interventions at the highest level could not undo the damage. It is in this backdrop that the government has decided to increase the quota of its regular scheme and reduce that of the private organizers. But this issue also raises questions about the quality of decision-making in the government as the authorities concerned were previously aiming at total privatization of Hajj but the idea was apparently dropped due to mishandling of the quota last year by the private sector. Of course, there have always been complaints about wrong-doings in Hajj operations but overall the government has improved its arrangements and most of the pilgrims express satisfaction over services rendered during their stay in the holy land.
The key element of any Hajj policy is the expenditure that has increased phenomenally during the last few years which is impeding plans of many to proceed on the sacred journey. This aspect is presently missing from the details released in the official handout, but it is hoped that the Ministry will make sincere efforts to bring down the cost of Hajj. With exchange rate stabilizing and fuel price coming down, it is possible to rationalize the cost of Hajj package with the cooperation of the Saudi authorities and introduction of transparency in hiring of buildings and transport/food arrangements. The re-introduction of hardship quota is retrogressive in nature as such quotas were used to shower favours in the past. The government has done well by binding the private Hajj organizers to accommodate those who could not perform Hajj this year due to uncalled-for delays in completion of relevant formalities. As for AI policy, it was the need of the hour in view of its growing popularity and prospects for meaningful development of the IT sector in Pakistan as AI adoption could boost the country’s GDP by 7-12% by 2030, unlocking a $2.7 billion market. Key targets of the policy include: training one million AI professionals by 2030, creating 3.5 million AI-linked jobs, launching 50,000 AI-powered civic projects, developing 1,000 local AI products, offering 3,000 annual AI scholarships, funding 1,000 research projects, establishing an AI Innovation Fund and AI Venture Fund and promoting inclusion of women and differently-abled individuals via accessible financing and education. There is, however, a dire need to review the syllabus being taught in our universities in view of persistent complaints about lack of relevance to the market and this should be done with the cooperation of renowned institutions and companies. Similarly, the IT Ministry and the PTA shoulder the blame for poor quality of Internet and data services and their lackluster approach to the rolling out of new technologies like 5G besides pathetic quality of the existing 4G.
