Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday launched the Prime Minister’s Youth Chromebook Scheme at a ceremony in Islamabad, announcing that the government will distribute 500,000 Chromebooks to students across the country over two years. At the launch, he distributed Chromebooks and internet devices to high-performing Grade 9 students and students of religious seminaries. According to Geo News and The News, the devices being distributed are refurbished Chromebooks, meaning they have been reconditioned after repair and testing. The scheme is run under the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme and is meant to give students modern technology that supports remote learning, digital skills, and employment opportunities.
Sharif said the Chromebooks will be given strictly on merit, in recognition of students’ hard work and academic ability, and without discrimination based on a student’s economic background or institution, according to Radio Pakistan. He said talent and effort should not be held back by wealth or poverty, and that students are the country’s greatest asset. Recalling the earlier laptop scheme under the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, he said that around 600,000 laptops were distributed on merit over ten years, and that 500,000 Chromebooks would now be distributed in two years. The prime minister also said the government is committed to equal educational opportunities for all talented students, including those in religious seminaries, which is why seminary students were among those who received devices at the ceremony.
Each Chromebook comes with extra equipment. The prime minister said a bag and a MiFi device are being provided along with each Chromebook, and Prime Minister’s Youth Programme Chairman Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan said the government will also provide high-speed internet connections to 500,000 students alongside the devices. The prime minister thanked overseas Pakistani Rashid Minhas for supporting the initiative. He told students that the devices would let them attend classes remotely, improve their digital skills, and pursue job opportunities, and Gulf News reported that he described them as tools to keep students from falling behind in knowledge and skills. Two students who spoke at the ceremony described the difficulties they had overcome to continue their education, and the prime minister referred to their stories in his address.
The Chromebook scheme builds on earlier registration steps for students. Government school students selected on the basis of their 2026 annual examination results have been asked to check their details and register through the portal of the Inter Board Committee of Chairmen (IBCC), with boards forwarding shortlisted names for verification. The prime minister also said at least 27 Danish schools are being built across the country, offering high-quality facilities free of charge, as part of the government’s wider education push. The reports on the launch do not say how many devices will be handed out in each phase, which provinces will receive them first, or how the internet connections will be provided, so those details will have to be confirmed as the distribution moves forward.
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