IT sector: 120% Foreign Direct Investment growth, July-October 2011

IT sector sees $9.4 million investment in the first four months of the 2011-12 fiscal year.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Pakistan's IT sector has seen a 120% growth, with a $9.4 million investment in the first four months of the 2011-12 fiscal year as compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) statistics have revealed.

The investment stood at $6.5 million in software development, $1.8 million in IT services and $1.1 million in hardware services.

Local firms and subsidies of foreign companies have been tapping the potential of the local market in different areas including software programming, mobile applications, networking services and hardware production.

Professionals from the industry say foreign companies are seeking joint ventures with local firms, and some are considering setting up their own outlets to tap local talent. Foreign companies in Pakistan are trying to scale up their business with the expansion of their networks and production volume, they added. This is seen as one of the factors contributing to a growth in FDI and an increase in employment in the IT sector.

According to the Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), 83 companies, having comprehensive authorised and paid-up capital, were listed in the first four months of the current fiscal year (July-October, 2011).

A version of this post originally appeared on ProPakistani.