If you are wondering what this is all about, please read this post first. Here are Adnan bhai's views on our IT scene in 2005.

Q: How much satisfied are you with the progress we have made during this year in our IT sector? If you are not much satisfied then what do you think are the impediments in our progress? Is it our government/companies/laws or our IT engineers? Explain your points and describe how we can make progress in days to come.

To evolve the software ecosystem in Pakistan, the Government, Businesses, Educational Institutions, and Entrepreneurs all have a part to play. It is utterly useless to look to the Government only for any solutions.

For the IT Industry to flourish in Pakistan, we need to have a local IT industry, and local technology consumers. This can happen if Government initiates spending on IT projects, which can lead to similar initiatives by the private sector. Hence, the local ISV (Independent Software Vendor) would have a local customer to cater to, before it can take on larger competitors globally. Universities need to start Entrepreneurship programs, and provide a bridge between new ideas and businesses. Entrepreneurs can play a key role by churning out innovative solutions for local public and private sector organizations. The Government, for its part, can provide easy access to capital through banks to promote and encourage young and talented Entrepreneurs. All pieces would have to work together.

Q: As being an MVP, you have been honored to attend MVP summit in Seattle and you have also been to India to attend a professional developers conference this year, how was your experience and how would you compare our IT markets and software industry from other developing/developed nations?

A clear distinction has to be made between the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry and Software/IT industry, since our Government has not been able to outline which it wants to focus on. Government officials and ministers still use the terms "E-Govenment" and "Call Centers" in the same sentence. India is a key player in the global BPO arena, and emerging countries as Egypt, Russia, Phillipines, and Bangladesh are eyeing a piece of the BPO action. A large part of software development in India is being done in research and development centers of foreign companies as Microsoft, IBM, HP, SAP etc. But they also have a domestic software/IT market valued at $5 billion. It was heartening to see and meet many Indian Entrepreneurs who have made a name for themselves for starting out with local customers and then gradually moving to new markets.

Q: Don’t you think that we are completely unsuccessful in bringing foreign investments to Pakistan in terms of software development and outsourcing?

I won't characterize it as being completely unsuccessful. There is still a lot of work being done for overseas clients currently, but not as much as we would like to see. There are still many unexplored areas that we can focus on. However, whatever the focus, it has to be with utmost dedication and resolve.

Q: Our country is full of talented people and we are no less then our neighbors, so why giants like Microsoft, Intel, IBM, Nokia and others are afraid of investing their money in terms of research and development in Pakistan as they do in India and other countries?

I think Pakistan is better than its neighbors in terms of human resources and motivation. But it is important to understand that 3 things play a key role in attracting investment from abroad; Perception, Innovation, and a local research culture. Pakistan in the recent years has been able to shed its negative image and improve its perception, yet the act of doing our laundry in public has harmed us to a great extent. Innovation can come only through Entrepreneurship which our culture has not been able to foster in young minds. The IT Ecosystem whereby the Industry looks to Academia for new ideas and research and invests heavily in University projects and research grants is only possible through a wave of Entrepreneurship endeavors which Universities should themselves cultivate. This alone would create a research culture bringing with it the much needed innovation and global projection that we seek.

Q: We have seen a boom in IT sector by the launch of various international companies offering their telecom services in Pakistan . What role do you see they are playing in the economic growth of our country?

The growth in Pakistan's Telecom sector during the past year has been nothing short of extraordinary. Many surveys point towards Pakistan as the fastest growing market for mobile phones in the world. Go to any mobile phone market and one would see the extent to which cell-phone usage has grown in the country. This is a good precedent. More mobile phone users mean more technology penetration within the masses, and the growth in opportunity for localized mobile applications and content. The need for local expertise in technology development is as important as the need for a local technology market. It is up to local software companies to capitalize on this growth in telecom sector locally. Here again, much too emphasis is placed on getting projects from abroad and the local opportunity is neglected.