Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday announcd the government has launched an 'Innovation Hub', a platform to facilitate exchange of ideas between the public and policymakers, as it looks to empower the youth.

The PM, in his address at the inaugural ceremony of the hub, said: "Modern science is the need of the hour, as nations move forward only through education, research and debate."

Head of Prime Minister’s Strategic Reforms Salman Sufi said, “The purpose of this scheme is to put public back into public policy.”

He said that the hub will be used by the public as a platform to submit different initiatives, which will be assessed by a panel of experts.

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The panel includes Sufi along with economist Professor Faisal Barri, economist Professor Shahrukh Wani, public policy professional Mosharraf Zaidi, Shiza Fatima, who is Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Youth Affairs and Senator Ayesha Raza Farooq.

“The ideas would be vetted by the experts, and the selected ideas would then be presented to the Prime Minister, which will then become part of the national policy, and will be implemented by PM’s Strategic Reform Unit (SRU),” Sufi said.

As per the government programme website, the ‘Innovation Hub Prime Minister’s Initiative for building Pakistan – Bringing Public back in Public Policy' is a platform for discourse which encourages citizens to share their ideas.

“We aspire to rise to become leaders in innovation with a sole aim of making Pakistan stronger,” it added.

The PM told attendees that the government will analyse and implement the ideas presented by the public, “to develop an inclusive approach", adding that "we can reap benefits from the ideas of our youth, and utilize it for the betterment of the country”.

He said a cell would be created in all governmental departments including power, petroleum, finance and accounts, which would bring in talented youth to foster new ideas.