Under the Public Sector Development Project (PSDP) for the fiscal year 2023–2024, the federal government has proposed spending Rs. 6 billion on projects for the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT).
The PSDP document states that the federal government has suggested allocating Rs. 5,990 million for 30 ongoing programs for the upcoming fiscal year. A new project in 2023–2024 has been budgeted for at Rs. 10 million.
Details of Govt. Grants For IT and Telecom Projects
For the IT Certification projects, a budget of Rs. 150 million has been requested, compared to Rs. 230 million for the Smart Office Federal Ministries and Departments initiative.
The federal government has proposed spending Rs. 548 million on the Cyber Security for Digital Pakistan initiative and Rs. 50 million for Crime Analytics and Smart Policing in Pakistan.
In contrast to the Rs. 250 million proposed for the 25 Software Technology Parks projects, the federal government has proposed Rs. 190 million for demand-driven industry quality and capacity enhancement programs.
A budget of Rs. 337 million has, in the meantime, been proposed for the creation of a data center for the delivery of cloud-based services in AJK and GB.
The cost to build an IT park in Karachi has been estimated at Rs. 160 million. The requested budget from the federal government for the SINO-Pak Centre for Artificial Intelligence is Rs. 150.7 million.
Additionally, the government has proposed spending Rs. 397 million for the expansion of broadband services in AJK and GB and Rs. 50 million for a system to manage compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation.
The projected budget for the High Impact Bootcamp projects in Karachi and Islamabad is Rs. 225 million.
In the upcoming fiscal year, the government has recommended spending Rs. 300 million for hybrid power solutions in AJK and GB, compared to Rs. 180 million for an ICT internship program and Rs. 150 million for the extension of the NICs program.
The National Freelance Training Program has a budget of Rs. 90 million planned, and one patient and one ID project has a budget of Rs. 45.8 million.
Additionally, a sum of Rs. 500 million and Rs. 93.6 million have been proposed for the President Initiative for a Cyber-Efficient Parliament and the Project Monitoring and Digital Transformation Cell, respectively.
The federal government has recommended spending Rs. 20.2 million to improve the ICT Infrastructure Project and Rs. 80 million to standardize the IT Industry.
The government has recommended spending Rs. 300 million on upgrading the transmission network and replacing optical fiber cables in AJK and GB, Rs. 540 million on developing a technology park, and Rs. 150 million for the IT Export Marketing Program.
The establishment of four knowledge parks, a blended virtual education program, and an online recruitment system for the FPSC have all been proposed with additional funding.
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