Federal Minister for IT Shaza Fatima Khawaja has been awarded the global title of “Industry Champion of the Year 2026” at the Fast Mode Awards 2026, marking a major recognition for Pakistan’s information technology sector.
The “Industry Champion of the Year” is the highest individual honour of the Fast Mode Awards and is given to only one leader from across the world each year.
At the Fast Mode Awards 2026, the Pakistani minister secured the global distinction in a competition featuring more than 500 companies from over 60 countries.
The award has been described as an important milestone for Pakistan’s IT industry and the country’s digital development.
Under the leadership of Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Pakistan’s IT and IT-enabled services exports reached a record $4.6 billion in the financial year 2025-26. The country’s IT sector also led all services sectors with a historic trade surplus of $3.9 billion.
Pakistan’s freelance export earnings also climbed to their highest level in history, touching $1.76 billion, while the number of freelancers crossed 2.37 million.
In March 2026, Pakistan completed the largest 5G and NGMS spectrum auction in its history, taking the country’s total spectrum to 750 MHz.
Pakistan also became the first country in Asia to abolish right-of-way charges for the expansion of fibre optic networks, a step linked to strengthening digital connectivity.
In August 2026, Google formally registered in Pakistan and opened its first office in the country. An assembly line for 600,000 Chromebooks annually was also launched in Pakistan.
Under the DigiSkills programme, more than 4.5 million young people have received free digital training, including 800,000 women.
According to the GSMA, Pakistan recorded the world’s fastest progress in reducing the gender gap in mobile internet usage, bringing it down from 38 per cent to 8 per cent.
Pakistan also improved by 27 places in the ITU ICT Development Index 2026, registering a significant achievement in the field of digital progress.
The global recognition for Shaza Fatima Khawaja comes at a time when Pakistan’s IT exports, freelance economy, spectrum development, digital training and international technology engagement have recorded major gains.
