Netxpress Aug Edition 2002
Of late, e-governance has become the catchphrase amongst the top brass in the government. After having had moderate success in pushing the Pakistan private sector into the global IT scenario, the government is now making commendable efforts to computerize the federal sector. The intention behind these efforts is to bring the government closer to the people and to bring more transparency in the working of the state machinery. Hopefully, this will also provide the common man with more access to government functionaries and allow him to make his voice heard.
However, a computerized environment requires qualified personnel to work in it. In the past, the Pakistan bureaucracy has had to make do with moderately qualified personnel. Since the computerization of state departments began in the last few years, increasing numbers of government employees have begun to receive computer education financed by the state department.
Most public departments have now started to introduce personal IT education departments that train their own personnel on one hand and earn extra revenue by offering courses to the general public too.
The NetXpress team took a look at some of the more prominent state-owned IT education centers.
Postal Information Technology Center (PITC)
Arguably, the best of the lot, PITC has been set up by the Pakistan Post Foundation in collaboration with COMSATS. Over a short period, they have developed a network of education centers across the country providing quality IT education to postal workers and the general public.
PITC has spared no cost in ensuring that their employees are educated in a state-of-the-art environment with a commendable infrastructure. COMSATS has joined hands with the PPF on a strictly no-profit, no-loss basis. COMSATS has taken on the responsibility of producing a quality workforce for the PPF and at the same time recovers a part of its cost by providing quality education to the general public.
What sets PITC apart from the other state-run IT centers is the highly educated and professional faculty. In addition, all PITC branches have a state-of-the-art computer network, individual attention for each student, and a plethora of courses to choose from.
Contact: pic@isb.paknet.com.pk (Islamabad – Main Campus)
Telecom Foundation Institute of Technologies and Management (Islamabad)
As the name suggests, the TF Institute is a venture of the state telecom, PTCL. PTCL has partly funded the institute and, in return, PTCL’s personnel and their children are given training in the fields that will help them face the challenges of telecommunications in the future. The younger students are prepared to be absorbed into the telecommunications industry. This is a highly innovative undertaking, sure to provide an impetus to the telecommunications industry when it is in dire need of qualified personnel to implement a strong infrastructure in the country.
Contact: tfinstitute@yahoo.com
PIA Training Center
The PIA Training Center aims to function more as an IT education center for the general public rather than for its personnel. Their intention is to assist the government in spreading e-awareness among the masses. Their website clearly defines their goal: to produce quality IT professionals who meet current global and national requirements.
The PIA Training Center has the advantage of an environment conducive to learning, where students get world-class facilities and interact with foreign students, learning about foreign cultures and work habits. The center offers courses ranging from corporate levels to diplomas with CIW and Java certification. In addition to these high-level courses, the center offers classes for beginners, making it an institute for all IT enthusiasts.
Contact: piait@piac.com.pk
URL: (piac.com.pk)
PTV Academy
The PTV Academy operates along similar lines as the PIA Training Center. It aims to assist the government in providing low-cost IT education to the public, ensuring growth in the number of IT professionals. Although the academy offers courses like Java certification, MIS (for executives), e-commerce, etc., the Academy still needs to prove its worth as a provider of quality IT education.
URL: www.ptv.com.pk/iteducation)
This breakdown covers prominent state-run organizations and their ventures into IT education. Some say they are trying to prove support for the government rather than become IT educators. Nonetheless, it is a start that can only benefit the IT sector in terms of encouragement.
