Chairman of the Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), Muhammad Zohaib Khan, expressed skepticism about Pakistan achieving its target of $15 billion in IT exports within the next five years. This skepticism stems from the industry’s key demand for a 10-year tax holiday, which has not been met.
Khan acknowledged that the IT industry appreciates its prioritization in the federal budget for 2023-24. However, he expressed concerns about the inconsistent and unreliable implementation of such measures in previous budgets and IT export promotion schemes. The real issue, according to Khan, lies in the lack of policy consistency, which becomes challenging with changes in government.
Furthermore, Khan emphasized that the industry strongly urged the government and state institutions to provide a 15-year guarantee of policy stability. Only then, he stated, can strategic investments be made, foreign direct investment (FDI) be attracted, and joint ventures with multinational companies be established.
Khan also highlighted that although the super tax has been withdrawn for export-oriented companies, they continue to receive notices, face harassment, and have their bank accounts frozen.
On a positive note, the P@SHA chairman appreciated the introduction of a scheme in the budget aimed at skills development for 50,000 IT graduates. He believes that if this scheme is implemented fairly and productively across Pakistan, it has the potential to be a game-changer.
