In #Lahore, we met with Chairman @PITB_Official @faisalyousaf786 and @BNULahore Vice Chancellor @YusufMoeed to discuss Pakistan's evolving digital landscape and its implications for security, higher education, & wider economic development agenda. #NHDR2023 #DigitalTransformation

#NHDR2023 Team held meetings with @LahoreChamber President Mr. Kashif Anwar and Director, Continuing Education & Extension at @UVAS_Official, Mr. Hassan Mahmood Warraich to gain insights on digital adoption & innovation in local businesses, regional development, & agriculture.

Our conversations with women professionals and informal workers visibly point towards the need for 🇵🇰 government, businesses & non-profits to carefully determine digitalisation outcomes and create distinct pathways to achieve those to close the gender gap. #NHDR2023 2/2

To understand women’s digital adoption in 🇵🇰 & associated impacts on their health, safety & livelihoods, we spoke to rights advocate Ms. Khawar Mumtaz, Founder - Women Business Network @samdada00, Director @GenTechLUMS Dr. Hadia Majid & @KashfFoundation in #Lahore. #NHDR2023 1/2

Two key asks emerging throughout our discussions with students & youth leaders: 📢To be given a better deal that provides quality education & builds skills to thrive in a digital world 📢Internet be treated as a fundamental human right to avoid shutdowns and learning gaps. 2/2

In #Lahore, we held discussions with university students at @ULahore, trainees at Pakistan ReadyMade Garments Technical Training Institute & VideoWaliSarkar CEO @BilalMunir1995 to assess how young people are navigating skills learning & careers amid rapid digital disruption. 1/2

#NHDR2023 Team met with Chief Economist Dr Aman Ullah @amaneconomist at @PnD_Punjab to learn about digital development portfolio in the province and discuss policy solutions for better data generation and integration across government departments and industries. #UNDPinPakistan

“The safety of our community is the most important consideration that drives our online behaviour and what we tweet and comment underneath posts." #DigitalTransformation #NHDR2023 #UNDPinPakistan 2/2

We sat down with Christian local gov & religious leaders, social workers, students, & other community members in a Focus Group Discussion, facilitated by Center for Law and Justice, to learn about the varied impacts social media has had on Christian community in Pakistan. 1/2

We held a Focus Group Discussion with informal workers, organized through @HomenetPakistan, to ask how smartphones and social media have benefitted growth of their micro-businesses 📈 and supported financial inclusion 💸 for women. #UNDPinPakistan

“Digital adoption in the education sector has largely been driven by siloed projects and less by a uniform policy intervention to digitally upskill teachers. As a result, we have not seen a large enough demonstration of those skills in regular use at work." @QAEDPK 3/3

"You would inevitably face challenges with tech whenever new tech is introduced. You also need to provide constant motivation to teachers 👩‍🏫 to help them smoothly transition to new modes of teaching powered by new tech," stated FGD participants at @QAEDPK. 2/3

Punjab has led robust school education reforms in past 15 years. #NHDR2023 Team met with @QAEDPK to discuss digital investments for teachers training and policy solutions that would address better academic engagement in Punjab's schools. 1/3 #UNDPinPakistan

We're in #Lahore this week to continue with #NHDR2023 consultations! Met with @sbasselums students & learned about the unique experiences young people today have in navigating data privacy issues & assisting elders find a place in the digital world. #DigitalTransformation

"Women's ownership of 📱 sims is critical to increasing their access to micro-credit & mobile wallets. This will need to be pushed by every actor in this business to create a level-playing field for all." - Farhan Hassan, Head of @easypaisa, in conversation with #NHDR2023 team.

"🇵🇰 technology startups depend on external capital because big industry is simply not making the tech investments it can. Industrial leaders are yet to take the tech leap themselves." - @bakhtiar_kasi (Dean, Faculty of ICT at @BUITEMS_edu), in conversation with #NHDR2023 Team.

#NHDR2023 Team also met with Hindu, Christian, Sikh and Hazara community representatives in #Quetta to learn about internet's impact on their lives. "Digitalisation has given us a voice and economic opportunities. We will have to work together to counter hate speech."