UK
High Commissioner chairs PTEN Roundtable, promotion of Pakistan’s tech exports discussed
A distinguished roundtable forum to mark the one year of the launching of London-based PTEN initiative was held at the Pakistan High Commission London on 19 August 2020. The Forum was chaired by High Commissioner Mohammad Nafees Zakaria.
The participants included Baroness Nosheena Mubarik – Member House of Lords, Syed Shabahat Ali Shah – CEO NITB Pakistan, Raheel Ahmad – Chief Products & Analytics Officer (Barclays UK), Abdul Rehman Qureshi Senior Banker & Investor UK, Ali Farid Khwaja – Chairman KASB Securities, Bilal Qureshi Co-Founder PTEN & CEO SCT Group and Mr. Rashid Iqbal – CEO Pakistan British Business Council.
Measures to promote and accelerate Pakistan’s Tech Exports were discussed.
High Commissioner Mohammad Nafees Zakaria in his remarks welcomed the participants and expressed satisfaction that the PTEN initiative has made significant progress since its launch in September 2019 under his patronage. He acknowledged that in the context of his proposal to establish a pavilion or outreach marketing platform at Royal Albert Dock, Pakistan-UK Business Council has played an effective role in the negotiations and the concept for the development of a hub of Pakistani companies. He expressed the hope that emerging Pakistani tech entrepreneurs would be able to benefit from this hub. Mr Zakaria underlined that Pakistan offers best concessions to investors in the technology sector.
Speaking on the occasion, PTEN Co Founder Mr. M Bilal Qureshi dwelt upon Pakistan’s enormous tech potential and shared roadmap for leveraging technology sector in accelerating Pakistan’s exports. He further updated on PTEN’s blueprint in facilitating Pakistan-based start-ups by enabling Access to Western Market, Mentorship & Capital.
Mr. Abdul Rehman Qureshi, Co Founder PTEN, elaborated the role of PTEN in leveraging technology for women empowerment and poverty alleviation.
Baroness Nosheena Mubarik in her remarks commended the High Commission for this initiative and expressed the hope that new business opportunities would emerge for the benefit of both countries.
Syed Shabahat Ali Shah, CEO NITB, remarked that fostering potential emerging Tech synergies for digital transformation is a need of 21st century. He further noted that digital transformation for every country has now became mandatory for securing venture investment, inducing transparency and ensuring accountability into governance systems.
At the conclusion of the event, PTEN announced plans for launching London- based Tech Accelerator for Emerging Markets Start-ups. PTEN Co Founders also thanked senior Venture Capitalists & Investment Bankers who attended the distinguished roundtable. Pakistan’s High Commission to the UK extended support to PTEN in bridging UK Pak ICT industries.
