Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja held a pivotal meeting with Google’s Regional AI Developer Ecosystem team. The meeting, held earlier this week, focused on developing a robust framework for AI adoption, youth empowerment, and fostering innovation in the digital landscape of Pakistan.
The session, the Google delegation briefed Minister Khawaja on several initiatives aimed at nurturing local talent and integrating AI in community-driven projects. These include the ongoing efforts of Google Developer Groups (GDGs), which host developer meetups and knowledge-sharing events across various cities in Pakistan, and TaleemAbaad, an educational initiative designed to promote digital literacy in underserved regions.
The Google team emphasized its commitment to working with local stakeholders, including government bodies, to scale these initiatives for a broader impact. Minister Khawaja welcomed these contributions and highlighted the importance of such partnerships in achieving long-term goals in Pakistan’s digital transformation strategy.
“Google’s support for our developer ecosystem shows how meaningful public-private partnerships can accelerate national progress,” she said.
In a separate but related session, Minister Khawaja met with the N+1 Team, a group of young Pakistani developers who recently represented Pakistan at the Google Solution Challenge 2025 held in the Philippines. Their project, which leveraged AI to address real-world problems, placed them among the top 10 teams globally, marking a significant milestone for the country’s tech sector.
The minister praised the team’s innovative spirit and expressed the government’s firm support for such youth-led initiatives.
“Pakistani youth are proving their capabilities at the global level. The government is committed to supporting and empowering such talent through the right platforms and opportunities,” she noted.
The N+1 team shared their experience at the international challenge and discussed the importance of mentorship, industry exposure, and continuous skill development to remain globally competitive in emerging technologies like AI and machine learning.
Minister Khawaja also stressed the need for a formalized partnership between the Ministry of IT and Telecommunication and Google to ensure sustainable development in Pakistan’s AI and digital technology ecosystem.
She proposed creating a joint roadmap to facilitate collaboration on several fronts:
- AI and Machine Learning Skill Development
- Startup Incubation and Acceleration
- Community-Based Tech Education
- Cybersecurity and Responsible AI Use
- Cloud Computing Infrastructure Enhancement
Google officials responded positively to the proposal and agreed to explore the possibility of structured collaboration, including potential future investments in Pakistan’s tech infrastructure.
The government of Pakistan, under its “Digital Pakistan” initiative, has been pushing for technological innovation, especially in areas like artificial intelligence, big data, blockchain, and cloud services. The Ministry of IT recently launched programs to support AI research, offer scholarships, and develop an AI policy framework for ethical use and governance.
Google’s involvement adds significant value to these national objectives, bringing in technical expertise, global best practices, and access to advanced development tools and cloud platforms.
This collaboration could also open avenues for Pakistani developers to contribute to Google’s global AI initiatives, which are focused on areas like healthcare, agriculture, and education — all sectors where Pakistan is in urgent need of scalable, data-driven solutions.
Minister Khawaja, known for advocating gender inclusion in tech, discussed with the Google team the need for encouraging women in AI and tech-related fields. She suggested launching programs specifically tailored to bring more women into the AI development ecosystem through coding boot camps, online certifications, and mentorship opportunities.
Google’s GDG Women Techmakers program is already active in Pakistan, and plans are underway to scale its reach to smaller cities and universities.
