HARIPUR: Prof Dr Attaur Rehman, chairman of Prime Minister’s Task Force on Science and Technology, has said that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government is utilising all its resources for the promotion of artificial intelligence and three modern technology-based universities will be commissioned in the country in near future.

He was speaking to the participants of National Artificial Intelligence Forum (NAIF), 2021, held at the Pak-Austria Fachhochschule: Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology (PAF-IAST), Haripur, on Thursday.

The Sino-Pak Centre for Artificial Intelligence (SPCAI) and the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT) jointly organised the forum.

Prof Rehman said Pakistan was a country bestowed with the human resources of intelligent youth and the positive use of technology by the youth could guarantee a bright future based on industrial and economic development. He said that the youth should be equipped with modern knowledge and required skills to lead the country as an innovation-driven economy.

Dr Mohammad Mujahid, rector PAF-IAST, on this occasion stressed skills orientation and focused research towards resolving the problems besides academia-industry linkages.

Dr Atif Shakoor, SPCAI managing director, shared the objectives and importance of the forum. He said NAIF was the first of its kind convention in Pakistan with an aim to gather policymakers, practitioners, experts, innovators, end-users, investor groups, researchers, entrepreneurs and representatives from various industries from Pakistan and abroad under one roof to initiate a national discourse about the importance of AI in socioeconomic settings.

Dr A Min Tjoa, vice-chairperson United Nations Commission on Science and Technology for Development, and other experts joined the event as panelists on this occasion. Over 20 experts from academic and industrial backgrounds participated in the event as guest speakers.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2021