ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information Technology (IT) and Telecom Shaza Fatima Khawaja said the Cybersecurity Act 2025 was essential for national security and reflected the government’s whole-of-nation approach to cybersecurity, marking a major reform initiative.

She noted that the Act will establish the National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA) to lead nationwide incident response and thr­eat intelligence, while exp­ansion of the Pakistan Computer Emergency Res­ponse Team (PKCERT), and the development of secure digital public infrastructure under the Digital Economy Enhancement Project (Deep) will further strengthen national cyber resilience.

Ms Khawaja was add­ressing a gathering at FAST National University, Islam­abad, on the theme ‘Securing Pakistan’s Digi­tal Frontier: CyberShield, Policy & the Future’. The event was hosted by the FAST Public Policy and Res­earch Society (FPPRS).

She added that Pakis­tan’s long-term objective is to build a cyber-resilient, innovation-driven dig­ital nation where secure infrastructure, technological excellence, and human cap­ital development adva­nce together.

The minister underscored that Pakistan’s digital transformation is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, bringing with it the critical responsibility of safeguarding national digital infrastructure and citizen data.

She highlighted Pakistan’s Tier-1 ranking in the ITU Global Cybersecurity Index as a reflection of the collective commitment of the government, academia, and youth toward building a secure digital future.

The minister said Pakistan is rapidly advancing toward AI-driven cybersecurity, dark-web moni­toring, and cloud security under the Cloud-First Policy, along with secure digital identity frameworks.

She also referred to the recent Marka-i-Haq, calling it a defining moment in which the armed forces, national institutions, and cyber experts stood united with remarkable resilience.

She emphasised that Pakistan’s effective and coordinated cyber warfare response during this period demonstrated exceptional national strength and technological capability, adding that Marka-i-Haq proved the cyber domain is the first line of defence in the modern era, and Pakistan has shown it can safeguard its digital frontiers with confidence and competence.

The minister also toured FAST-NU Islamabad’s IC Design Lab along with Director Dr Waseem Shahzad, Dean Dr Sadia Nadeem, and Fast Public Policy and Research Society (FPPRS) President Zainab Inam Cheema, and met scholars enrolled in Ignite’s flagship training initiative, “Training in IC Design & Verification.”

Under this Ignite-funded programme, 30 young engineers — including seven female participants — are undergoing a rigorous 10-month training course covering IC design, verification, and fabrication processes.

Implemented by FAST-NU, the programme offers hands-on training aligned with global semiconductor industry standards.

Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2025