May 17, 2003	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 14, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, May 16: Pakistan and Algeria will collaborate in information technology and telecom sectors to forge a partnership for sharing expertise and available resources between the two countries.

This was stated by Federal Information Technology Minister Awais Leghari on Friday while talking to Algerian ambassador Sefedjeli Aissa, who called on the minister to convey his country’s desire to forge mutually-beneficial relationship with Pakistan in the IT and education sectors.

The minister pledged all-out support to Algeria in response to a desire expressed by the Algerian president for seeking help from Pakistan in the fields of information technology and education.

“We appreciate the confidence the Algerian president has reposed in us and government of Pakistan would do all it could to materialise his desire in concrete terms,” the minister said.

The minister also called for joint ventures and exchange of expertise and human resource between Pakistan and Algeria. “Pakistan is in possession of high-class expertise and human resource that can be used for the uplift and promotion of the information technology and telecom sectors in Algeria”, he said.

He also told the Algerian envoy that the telecom sector in the country was moving towards the process of deregulation and after the completion of the process there would be massive investment in the sector, especially in the wake of issuance of new licenses to mobile phone operators and the use and application of new technologies.

Mr Leghari also highlighted the governments efforts to promote the IT and telecom sectors, with particular focus on the expansion of internet and telephone facilities in the far-flung areas of the country.