Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced Pakistan would provide 500,000 Chromebooks over two years, a plan intended to widen students’ access to digital education, Gulf News reported.
Sharif unveiled the Prime Minister’s Youth Chromebook Scheme in Islamabad on Sunday, Oct. 25, Gulf News reported.
He said selection would turn on academic merit, not students’ financial circumstances. The initiative would include religious seminary students alongside those attending schools, colleges and universities.
Sharif said the computers could support remote learning, strengthen students’ technology skills and improve their employment prospects. He presented access to modern technology for young people as a public responsibility and described students as an important national resource.
Sharif also recalled that administrations led by his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party provided 600,000 laptops over a 10-year period. Gulf News reported that in August he had said the government planned to give Chromebooks to 250,000 high-achieving students that year.
