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Pakistani IT firms poised to make ‘lasting impression’ as major tech show kicks off in Dubai

Participants attend GITEX Global conference in Dubai in 2023. (GITEX/File)
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Updated 14 October 2024
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Pakistani IT firms poised to make ‘lasting impression’ as major tech show kicks off in Dubai

  • The annual GITEX Global exhibition is considered one of the world’s largest tech shows that connects industry leaders with major tech and innovation startups
  • Pakistan aims to showcase its growing capabilities in the IT sector through a contingent of 24 leading exhibitors from the country, the Pakistani embassy says
Updated 14 October 2024
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani information technology (IT) firms are poised to make a “lasting impression” by showcasing their tech potential at the four-day Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX) 2024, the Pakistani embassy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Sunday, a day before the exhibition’s opening in Dubai.

The annual GITEX Global exhibition is considered one of the world’s largest tech shows that connects industry leaders with major tech and innovation startups as well as government officials, expert investors and corporate buyers. This year’s exhibition will run from Oct. 14 till Oct. 18.

Pakistan aims to showcase its growing capabilities in the IT sector through a contingent of 24 leading exhibitors at the event, which offers an opportunity for companies to connect with global tech leaders, investors, and potential partners.

“The Government of Pakistan is facilitating a 156-square-meter exhibition space at the Dubai World Trade Center where Pakistani companies are poised to make a lasting impression,” the Pakistani embassy in Abu Dhabi said in a statement.

“This year’s participation underscores Pakistan’s growing influence in the global digital economy and reaffirms the country’s potential as a leading IT destination.”

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UAE Faisal Niaz Tirmizi said that the South Asian country was proud to be recognized as the ‘Tech Destination of the Year 2024’ by GITEX Global, which was a testament to Pakistan’s progress in IT and tech industries.

“This recognition reinforces Pakistan’s status as an emerging hub for digital innovation and entrepreneurship,” Ambassador Tirmizi was quoted as saying by the embassy.

Pakistan was declared the 2024 event’s “Tech Destination of the Year” following the participation of Pakistani IT firms in the previous GITEX editions, Sajjad Mustafa Syed, chairman of the Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), told Arab News last week.

“There will be representation of IT sector of 180 countries, more than 200,000 sizeable trade buyers of IT services, 65,000 top-level IT executives from world over and 7,000 multinational companies of IT and allied industries [in the GITEX Global tech show],” he said on Friday, adding that Pakistani IT firms were expecting to generate leads of up to $500 million for the country.

GITEX Global is known for bringing together global tech giants, governments, start-ups, and investors, offering a platform for transformative innovations. Pakistan’s involvement in the event demonstrates its commitment to advancing its digital economy and enhancing its global footprint in the tech industry.

Topics: Pakistan Dubai GITEX GITEX 2024

No casualties as blast derails Jaffar Express train in Pakistan’s south

Updated 10 sec ago
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No casualties as blast derails Jaffar Express train in Pakistan’s south

  • Passengers were stranded and railway staffers were clearing the track after blast, official says
  • In March 2025, separatist militants hijacked the same train with hundreds of passengers aboard
Updated 10 sec ago
Saadullah Akhtar

QUETTA: A blast hit Jaffar Express and derailed four carriages of the passenger train in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province on Monday, officials said, with no casualties reported.

The blast occurred at the Abad railway station when the Peshawar-bound train was on its way to Sindh’s Sukkur city from Quetta, according to Pakistan Railways’ Quetta Division controller Muhammad Kashif.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bomb attack, but passenger trains have often been targeted by Baloch separatist outfits in the restive Balochistan province that borders Sindh.

“Four bogies of the train were derailed due to the intensity of the explosion,” Kashif told Arab News. “No casualty was reported in the latest attack on passenger train.”

Another railway employee, who was aboard the train and requested anonymity, said the train was heading toward Sukkur from Jacobabad when they heard the powerful explosion, which derailed power van among four bogies.

“A small piece of the railway track has been destroyed,” he said, adding that passengers were now standing outside the train and railway staffers were busy clearing the track.

In March last year, fighters belonging to the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group had stormed Jaffar Express with hundreds of passengers on board and took them hostage. The military had rescued them after an hours-long operation that left 33 militants, 23 soldiers, three railway staff and five passengers dead.

The passenger train, which runs between Balochistan’s provincial capital of Quetta and Peshawar in the country’s northwest, had been targeted in at least four bomb attacks last year since the March hijacking, according to an Arab News tally.

Pakistan Railways says it has beefed up security arrangements for passenger trains in the province and increased the number of paramilitary troops on Jaffar Express since the hijacking in March, but militants have continued to target them in the restive region.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s southwestern province that borders Iran and Afghanistan, is the site of a decades-long insurgency waged by Baloch separatist groups who often attack security forces and foreigners, and kidnap government officials.

The separatists accuse the central government of stealing the region’s resources to fund development elsewhere in the country. The Pakistani government denies the allegations and says it is working for the uplift of local communities in Balochistan.

Topics: Jaffar Express

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