Pakistan to distribute 500,000 Chromebooks to students in two years

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Sunday that the government will distribute 500,000 Chromebooks to students nationwide over two years, launching the Prime Minister's Youth Chromebook Scheme in Islamabad to expand access to digital education.

How will the Chromebook scheme select students?

Chromebooks will be distributed strictly on the basis of merit and hard work. The devices are meant to let students continue their education remotely from home, access electronic libraries, and learn from anywhere in the world, according to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

What did Shehbaz Sharif say at the launch?

Speaking at the ceremony, Sharif said providing young people with modern technology was his duty and the state's "collective responsibility." He described students from across the country as the nation's true assets.

"Our boys and girls from all over Pakistan are the true assets of our country. It is my duty and our collective responsibility to put the most modern technology and techniques in your hands so that you can become the great builders of Pakistan," he said.

The prime minister also thanked Rashid Minhas, founder of the Tokyo Care Foundation, for donating to the initiative.

How does the scheme compare with earlier laptop programs?

Referring to previous education initiatives, Sharif said the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, under former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, had distributed 600,000 laptops to deserving students. Recipients included students in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, selected on ability, merit and hard work.

He said laptops distributed during the COVID-19 pandemic had proved useful for both education and employment. Students who received the devices, he added, had gone on to become doctors and engineers.

What other education projects did the prime minister mention?

Sharif also highlighted the government's efforts to improve educational facilities. He said a Danish School had been inaugurated in Islamabad a few days earlier, and that 27 such schools were under construction across Pakistan.

The schools, he said, would stand out for their quality of education, highly qualified teachers, smart boards in classrooms and electronic libraries.

Concluding his address, Sharif recited verses expressing confidence in Pakistan's future and determination to overcome challenges.

"Wherever our caravan of resolve and conviction sets out, the path will emerge from there. Let the soil of my homeland allow me to dig with my heels; I am certain a spring will emerge from here."

He ended his speech with the slogans "Long live Pakistan" and "Long live Quaid-e-Azam."