Chinese company to invest $300 million in IT sector

There are no two ways about it; China’s commitment to guide Pakistan to a better state of technology and innovation is absolute. Of course, one can argue long and hard about our friendliest neighbor’s true motives here, but the fact remains that it has already made quite an impact by introducing capital and a host of much needed technological services, with plans to do more for Pakistan’s economy. In fact, a Chinese company is now adamant on fostering a digital culture in the country by introducing a plethora of IT-based projects.

Timesaco is a Chinese investment firm which has made headlines in the past by announcing its plan to invest up to $600 million in Pakistan. It now looks forward to accomplishing a grander vision of digitally empowering the youth of Pakistan.

“We want to train the local youth and also start the capacity building programme for them to equip them with advanced technology in services sectors,” said Timesaco CEO Donald Li in an interview on Sunday. He went on to explain that the firm planned to achieve this by creating millions of jobs and opportunities for the youth through the medium of e-commerce platforms implemented in the six major cities of Pakistan. He is confident that enabling the youth to conduct online business will play a significant role in improving their lives as well as their contribution to society.

With a burgeoning youth population of more than 100 million, Li believes that the Pakistani landscape is ripe for booming success in the technology sector. Therefore, Timesaco has not been shy about investing huge sums in the country and creating various digital products for local use, such as Buraq taxi service, Fema instant delivery service, and a City Freight service.

While these services are set to be implemented in Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi and Peshawar for now, Li added that the company intended to intervene in the rural areas as well during the second phase, in which he wants to “provide skills to the rural youth in their own region”.

Furthermore, he stated that Timesaco wanted to encourage progress in Pakistan by launching an annual list of the 100 most successful people in the country and highlighting their efforts.