ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday emphasized the need for Pakistan to accelerate innovation and reform to remain competitive in a rapidly changing world.
Speaking at the launch ceremony of the National Early Childhood Development Framework and the Pak SUN Youth Network, he highlighted that agility and adaptability would determine the country’s progress.
“This is the age of innovation and reform. As a small nation, we have the potential to be far more agile. Our capacity to adapt is far greater than that of India’s 1.5 billion-strong population,” he said.
He stressed the need for Pakistan to embrace rapid yet structured transformation to achieve its development goals, adding, “By 2047, when both Pakistan and India celebrate 100 years of independence, we must surpass India in development.”
Iqbal underlined the role of technology and knowledge in driving progress, pointing out that a population of just 10 million in Europe holds more patents and innovations than 52 Muslim countries combined. “It is not population size but technological advancement that shapes a nation’s future,” he said.
Reflecting on past setbacks, he noted that development initiatives under the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government were repeatedly disrupted. “Whenever we set Pakistan on a stable development path, the system was derailed, preventing continuity,” he said.
He recalled the Vision 2010 and Vision 2025 plans, which led global rating agencies to predict that Pakistan would be among the top 20 economies by 2030.
He also mentioned the foundations of artificial intelligence (AI) and technology-driven projects laid by the PML-N government in 2016 and 2017, including the establishment of National Centers for AI, Big Data, Cyber Security, Satellite Technology, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). “Today, AI is being widely discussed, but we initiated its groundwork years ago,” he said.
Iqbal expressed confidence that Pakistan would achieve its development goals under the newly launched five-year “Uraan Pakistan – 5Es National Economic Transformation Plan (2024-29),” which aims to position the country on a trajectory toward a trillion-dollar economy by 2035.
Highlighting the importance of space technology, he stated, “The 21st century is the century of the space economy. Countries are racing to explore planetary minerals and dominate space.”
During a recent visit to SUPARCO Headquarters, he expressed his vision of Pakistan reclaiming its place in space exploration. “SUPARCO is not just an organization. It symbolizes the aspirations of the Pakistani nation to conquer the stars,” he wrote in the visitors’ book.
He called on SUPARCO to work toward landing a Pakistani spacecraft on the moon before 2035 and establishing a research center on the lunar surface by 2047. “Pakistan must advance in space technology and innovation if we are to compete globally,” he said, urging national institutions to rise to the challenge.
