ISLAMABAD: The Saudi-led Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO) will open up opportunities for Pakistan’s information technology startups and talent to enter the Gulf market, officials and IT companies have said.
The DCO was launched by Saudi Arabia on November 26 to strengthen cooperation across innovation-driven sectors and accelerate the growth of the digital economy. The organization’s members are Pakistan, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
“Pakistan has immense talent in the IT field,” said Imran Ghazali, general manager of the government’s digital media wing, who has participated in all DCO meetings so far. “Through this forum, a lot of collaborations will take place which will benefit Pakistani entrepreneurs and IT startups.”
“It is a positive step for Pakistan and will benefit the country as well as entrepreneurs and IT startups,” Ghazali said, adding that IT companies in the Gulf region were currently dominated by India.
“Through this collaboration the share in the growing IT market of the Gulf countries will increase for Pakistani companies, which is not up to the mark so far,” he said. “Saudi Arabia has revolutionized its IT infrastructure and Pakistanis can benefit from it.”
Through its first year, the DCO secretariat is going to be based in Saudi Arabia, but will subsequently rotate among the organization’s members, including Pakistan.
In the group’s first meeting, the main focus was improving the digital economy with an emphasis on e-commerce and collaborations to maximize expertise-sharing among DCO members, Ghazali said.
Since more than half of Pakistan’s population has no access to the Internet, improving the country’s digital inclusion is also on the DCO agenda.
“The other aim is to support youth and women entrepreneurs in their startups,” Ghazali said. “The organization will also work for enhancing digital cooperation in the fields of health and education,” he said.
Faizaan Ghauri, chief executive of WRLD, a company that creates immersive 3D maps of the world, said that the organization would open the door for Pakistani firms to enter the Gulf market more “smoothly.”
“Anyone who is looking to engage the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] region, they have to talk yo lot of relevant people on the ground and they have this platform to make new connections and present their solutions,” he told Arab News. “Pakistan’s young generation and startups are quick adopters so they can adapt the regional requirements quickly to benefit from this opportunity which is quite huge.”
Ghauri added that the DCO would also provide a great opportunity for Pakistan in the field of data protection: “This regional platform can help us in protecting our data in a better way.”
Other industry stakeholders say the requirements for them to get involved in the new platform remain unclear thus far.
“Majority of our IT startups and professionals did not know about this,” Anis Sheikh, chief executive of award-winning artificial intelligence startup BaseH Sheikh, told Arab News, commenting on the DCO. “Government has to create awareness in them so that they can effectively utilize the opportunities created through this platform.”
“We have been doing amazing work in the IT and AI fields,” he added, “but need proper connection to utilize the potential of the Gulf market.”
Pakistan aims to tap Gulf market with Saudi-led Digital Cooperation Organization membership
https://arab.news/5zyxw
Pakistan aims to tap Gulf market with Saudi-led Digital Cooperation Organization membership
- New platform comprises Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and UAE
- Was launched on Nov. 26 to strengthen cooperation across innovation-driven sectors and accelerate digital economy growth
US freezes visa processing for 75 countries, media reports Pakistan included
- State Department announces indefinite pause on immigrant visas starting Jan 21
- Move underscores Trump’s hard-line immigration push despite close Pakistan-US ties
ISLAMABAD: The United States will pause immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries starting Jan. 21, the State Department said on Wednesday, with Fox News and other media outlets reporting that Pakistan is among the countries affected by the indefinite suspension.
The move comes as the Trump administration presses ahead with a broad immigration crackdown, with Pakistan included among the affected countries despite strong ongoing diplomatic engagement between Islamabad and Washington on economic cooperation, regional diplomacy and security matters.
Fox News, citing an internal State Department memo, said US embassies had been instructed to refuse immigrant visas under existing law while Washington reassesses screening and vetting procedures. The report said the pause would apply indefinitely and covers countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.
“The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the US can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people,” the Department of State said in a post on X.
According to Fox News and Pakistan news outlets like Dawn, the list of affected countries includes Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Russia, Somalia, Brazil and Thailand, among others.
“The suspension could delay travel, study, and work plans for thousands of Pakistanis who annually seek US visas. Pakistani consulates in the US are expected to provide guidance to affected applicants in the coming days,” Dawn reported.
A State Department spokesman declined comment when Arab News reached out via email to confirm if Pakistan was on the list.
The Department has not publicly released the full list of countries or clarified which visa categories would be affected, nor has it provided a timeline for when processing could resume.
Trump has made immigration enforcement a central pillar of his agenda since returning to office last year, reviving and expanding the use of the “public charge” provision of US immigration law to restrict entry by migrants deemed likely to rely on public benefits.
During his previous term as president, Trump imposed sweeping travel restrictions on several Muslim-majority countries, a policy widely referred to as a “Muslim ban,” which was challenged in US courts before a revised version was upheld by the Supreme Court. That policy was later rescinded under the President Joe Biden administration.
The latest visa freeze marks a renewed hardening of US immigration policy, raising uncertainty for migrants from affected countries as Washington reassesses its screening and vetting procedures.
The freeze on visas comes amid an intensifying crackdown on immigration enforcement by the Trump administration. In Minneapolis last week, a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good, a US citizen, during a federal operation, an incident that has drawn nationwide protests and scrutiny of ICE tactics. Family members and local officials have challenged the federal account of the shooting, even as Department of Homeland Security officials defended the agent’s actions. The case has prompted resignations by federal prosecutors and heightened debate over the conduct of immigration enforcement under the current administration.
