Anusha inaugurates National Incubation Centre at LUMS

LAHORE: State Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication, Anusha Rehman inaugurated the National Incubation Centre (NIC) here at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), on Saturday.

Addressing the inaugural ceremony and later talking to the media, she said that after Islamabad, opening of another NIC at LUMS Lahore was as per manifesto of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) government, which envisages `Digital Revolution' in Pakistan.

Anusha Rehman said that National Incubation Centre was an opportunity for young entrepreneurs to improve the business objective and get themselves recognised in the global economy. The collaboration among Minister of Information Technology and Telecommunication, IGNITE, LUMS and other consortiums would turn this into a reality, she added.

The state minister also appreciated the endeavours, rendered by the IT Ministry partners, who made it (NIC) possible. She hoped that all start-ups would join the NIC to get their dreams come true.

Anusha Rehman said that the initiative of incubation centre had been launched under the leadership of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with an objective to enable the young entrepreneurs to run and improve their businesses with the help of information technology.

The PML-N government, she said, had matchless public service record, adding that the PML-N would again be elected to the government in the next general election due to its massive development and public welfare projects. She said that the PML-N was very much united under the leadership of Muhammad Nawaz Sharif.

The minister said that IT & Telecom Ministry was all set to start computer training of 110,000 female students by January 1, 2018 to enable them to earn livelihood at their homes. Skill development in the field of information technology was being carried out as per vision of the prime minister and the Punjab chief minister, asserting that introduction of 3G and 4G technology in Pakistan was a great success of the incumbent government, while 5G technology would be introduced in the country by year 2020.

Earlier, in his welcome address, LUMS Vice Chancellor Dr Sohail H Naqvi termed the NIC a greater achievement. He mentioned that the NIC was an improved structure of LUMS Centre for Entrepreneurship (LCE), established in May 2014 to explore companies having greater impact as well as improve and increase their production capacity. Then LCE had incubated 78 institutions of which 17 had received around US$400,000 million funds and their worth was now US$20 million. Then LCE also helped create 1,500 direct and 5,000 indirect employment opportunities.

On this occasion, IGNITE CEO Yusuf Hussain spoke of the NICs role in the knowledge economy of Pakistan and how these would become breeding grounds for sustainable growth and drive Pakistan's economy forward with 4th Industrial wave technologies.

Lahore NIC Director Faisal Jalil Sherjan said the Centre would house the first-ever Makers Lab in Pakistan, a modern facility equipped with the latest technologies and smart equipment to bring ideas to life.

LUMS Prov VC Syed Babar Ali, Fatema Venture's CEO Ali Mukhtar, 47 Ventures Investment's Country Director Khurram Zaffar and others attended the ceremony.