Pakistan, World Bank sign IT accord
ISLAMABAD- Pakistan and the World Bank signed a preliminary accord that will provide a comprehensive framework for Internet-based partnerships, transactions and learning.
To this effect, a memorandum of understanding was signed by Minister for Science and Technology Prof Atta-ur-Rahman and Michael Potashnikl of the Bank’s Global Development Gateway team for the establishment of the Pakistan Development Gateway.
The Gateway is visualised as a portal website on development issues from which users will be able to access information, resources and tools. The programme is said to be user-friendly, being easy to access and navigate. The Gateway is intended to serve the needs of a broad array of stakeholders, including governments, the donor community, NG0s and public and private sectors. Next to be set up will be a Pakistan Gateway Working Group representing both government and private representatives. This group will take responsibility, among other things, for the preparation of basic project documents and the portal site at the Pakistan end.
will also foster the establishment of a legal entity that will operate and maintain the Pakistan Gateway under a legal agreement with the Global Development Gateway Foundation. The World Bank will assist the working group in Pakistan with project preparation in its early stages, as well as provide publicly available information data from the Bank’s sources in order for the Pakistan portal website to build content. The Pakistan government will facilitate the startup of the project and its implementation and operation.
The Gateway is envisaged as an independent entity. It is expected that the Gateway will help strengthen the private sector’s participation in several ways, including transaction-oriented information services as well as country and product market research. The marketplace will help enhanced participation by the private sector through global investment and other commercial activities, which are rapidly moving to online transactional channels.
A Bank official said the goal was to use the Internet as a tool to reduce poverty and support sustainable development through sharing of information and knowledge. The World Bank will be presented in the project by Dr Akbar Khwaja and the Government of Pakistan by Federal Secretary Abu Shamim Arif.
Source: The News
Date:9/13/2000
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