Roundtable on recognising gaming as a separate industry

Islamabad : Dr Hameed-ur-Rehman from Air University has said enumerated ongoing efforts to raise awareness among youth about the opportunities in the gaming industry and enhance teaching methodologies to cultivate their interest in this field. Dr Rehman was addressing a round table discussion on "Gaming as an export industry: opportunities and challenges for Pakistan" organised here by the Institute of Regional Studies (IRS). Dr Rehman acknowledged that only a few students currently consider gaming as a viable career option despite its immense potential. The aim is to encourage more students to explore gaming as a career path and tap into its potential for economic growth. Abdul Salam, CEO, of 9D Technologies, admitted the existing skilled labor gap within the gaming industry and shared his concerns about the shortage of skilled workforce within his private company. Despite having the capacity and potential for team expansion, the challenge lies in finding qualified professionals, he emphasised stressing the need for the education sector to produce a pool of talented individuals specifically trained in animation and gaming development to address this critical shortage of skilled resources.

Kashoon Leeza, Policy Advocacy Lead P@SHA, exhorted that Pakistan boasts a significant gamer base of 80 million users. However, she pointed out the absence of specific policies catering to IT sub-sectors, as the current 26 policies are implemented across the entire IT sector. She further mentioned the lack of a streamlined one-window operation, which hampers foreign funding opportunities, despite Pakistan offering 100% ownership to direct investors. Muhammad Bilal Abbasi, General Manager, of IGNITE National Technology Fund, emphasised the need for government intervention to address the gaps identified by the private sector such as the scarcity of studios and space for game developers, as well as the absence of motion detection suits.