“If the digital transformation was number five or six on the list of priority of CEOs, the pandemic has brought it up to the top three,” says Saquib Ahmad, Managing Director for SAP in Pakistan. SAP, a German multinational software company. About 80pc of the products used by an average consumer in Pakistan, from toothpaste in the morning to the car driven to work, run on SAP software, directly or indirectly.

The growth in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector in Pakistan is evident from its export numbers which have doubled in the last decade. And this is just through the official channels. According to the Pakistan Business Council, freelancers, small firms, and IT professionals send additional remittances worth $2-3bn through other channels.

There is room for the sector to grow since IT requires minimal investment to set up but generates 2x-6x more revenue per headcount as compared to a textile worker, says PBC. Investing in IT is a low-hanging fruit that reaps bountiful results.

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, October 3rd, 2022