BEIJING – The development of information technology industry can putPakistan’s economy on the track of fast development for prosperity andenhancement of the comprehensive national strength, a Chinese scholar saidon Saturday.
“The information industry has become the driving force for the economicdevelopment of all countries in the world. Therefore, the development ofinformation technology industry can put Pakistan’s economy on the track offast development for prosperity and enhancement of the comprehensivenational strength,” Cheng Xizhong, Special Commentator of China EconomicNet and visiting Professor at Southwest University of Political Science andLaw opined in his article.
He informed that currently, the global information industry is growing at arate of 30 per cent. At present, Pakistan’s export value of informationtechnology products and services is about 1 billion U.S. dollars.
On February 7, Prime Minister Imran Khan convened a meeting to study urgentmeasures to drive information technology development. Experts put forwardfive measures: first, to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises todevelop national information technology; second, to publicize theinternational image of Pakistan’s technology investment environment; third,to build five information technology special zones to promote the export ofinformation technology; fourth, to formulate 5G plan and developtelecommunications infrastructure; and fifth, to adjust the tax policies tomake them more reasonable for export of information technology products andservices.
With electronic technology and information service as the development core,information technology industry has gradually become an important standardfor a country’s comprehensive strength.
At present, many countries in the world regard information industry as apillar to promote economic and social development. At the same time, theinformation industry can effectively promote the adjustment of industrialstructure, bring new development mode to the economy, and provide necessaryconditions for sustainable development.
He said, the impact of information technology industry on the developmentof national economy is mainly reflected in the following five aspects.
The first is softening effect. Information industry plays a softening rolein the development of national economy, which is mainly reflected in thesoftening effecton industrial structure, employment structure and consumption structure.
On the one hand, soft industry appears in the national economy, such assoftware industry, computer information service industry and databaseindustry. On the other hand, the hard industry can also be softened.
The advanced technology and equipment and excellent information environmentbrought by the information industry can make significant changes in theproduction, sales and management of many traditional industries.
Read Top Stories
The second is boosting effect. Information industry can not only createsocial value independently, but also penetrate into other industries, drivethe development of other industries, and then upgrade the whole economicsystem.
The third is optimization effect. Information is the key factor for modernproduction, which lays the foundation of modern productivity together withcapital and labor force.
Information elements can boost the information content of capital elements,and significantly improve the overall level and utilization of capital.
Information elements can also improve the technical level of workers andenhance the transparency and openness of management, thus making thenational economic system enter into a more efficient operation trend.
The fourth is multiplication effect. The information industry can play adirect or indirect role in the economic growth. The informationtransformation of traditional industries can effectively promote theproductivity, and thus produce a series of overall economic benefits.
The fifth is the leading effect. The technological revolution in the newera has led to the development of many high-tech industries.
As a breakthrough in the application research for various industries, theinformation technology plays a key leading role for such industries asbiopharmaceutical, communication engineering, optical fiber technology,marine technology, material and energy, and new services.
