ISLAMABAD; Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja met with a senior Meta delegation in Islamabad on Thursday to discuss accelerating Pakistan’s digital transformation, harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) for public services, and deepening collaboration to build a robust digital ecosystem.
Khawaja held a meeting with a high-level delegation from Meta, headed by Sarim Aziz, Director of Public Policy for South and Central Asia.
The discussion centered on accelerating Pakistan’s digital transformation, harnessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) in public service delivery, and strengthening joint initiatives to foster innovation and digital capacity-building across the country.
Minister Shaza Fatima underscored the government’s firm commitment to realizing the vision of a “Digital Pakistan.” She noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif personally chairs weekly reviews to oversee the nation’s transition toward a cashless economy. Highlighting the government’s priorities, she said creating a digitally empowered society remains at the heart of building a “Digital Nation Pakistan,” with emerging technologies like AI poised to revolutionize governance, service delivery, and economic growth.
The Meta team provided updates on the company’s latest advancements in AI, including its open-source LLaMA models, generative AI applications for the public sector, and initiatives aimed at developing local language tools, especially in Urdu.
Both sides showed keen interest in launching joint training programs, with a special focus on educators. They also agreed to explore broader partnerships in AI deployment, digital skills development, and driving innovation within the public sector to support Pakistan’s rapidly evolving digital landscape.
