Pakistan’s digital economy has grown rapidly over the past decade, driven largely by the expansion of the freelancing and IT/ITeS export sectors, and it is currently among the world’s top countries for freelance talent. However, despite this large talent pool, Pakistan captures only a small share of the global digital work opportunity. The country’s broader IT/ITeS sector faces systemic barriers, low firm productivity, limited integration with global value chains, foreign exchange constraints, and insufficient regulation around cross-border payments.
This policy exchange brought together researchers, policymakers, platform representatives, and industry leaders to identify practical reforms to accelerate growth in the IT sector.