Pakistan Completes Semiconductor Framework, Sets Up Three Research Clusters
Wire desk byline Sourced from Xinhua, Dawn, Arab News, Anadolu and Minute Mirror. Translated and abridged by the GSRRA Desk.
Pakistan has completed the institutional setup of its national semiconductor education and research cluster network after NED University of Engineering & Technology joined the Semiconductor Education & Research Cluster (SERC) as the lead university for the South Region.
Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja witnessed the signing of the agreement between the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) and NED University in Karachi.
The agreement formally establishes NED as the South Region’s lead university, alongside NUST for the North Region and ESUPAK-UET Lahore for the Central Region.
The signing completes all three SERC institutional agreements under the National Semiconductor Human Resource Development Program (NSHRDP), also known as INSPIRE.
Three Regional Semiconductor Clusters Established
The completion of the agreements means Pakistan now has three formally established regional semiconductor education and research clusters under the program.
NUST will lead activities in the North, ESUPAK-UET Lahore will cover the Central Region, and NED University will lead the South.
According to the IT Ministry, the agreements have been completed within the first year of the INSPIRE program, allowing it to move into full-scale implementation.
The current SERC intake will train 270 students across the three regions.
The program has a broader target of developing more than 7,200 semiconductor professionals in Pakistan by 2030.
Govt Targets Semiconductor Talent
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Shaza Fatima Khawaja described the agreement as an important milestone in Pakistan’s efforts to develop a competitive semiconductor ecosystem.
She said the INSPIRE program is focused not only on training students but also on creating the foundation for Pakistan to participate in the global semiconductor value chain.
The semiconductor industry requires skilled professionals across areas including chip design, manufacturing, testing and related technologies. The government’s program is aimed at building the human resources needed to support this sector in Pakistan.
With NED now formally joining the SERC network, all three regional clusters under INSPIRE are in place. The program can now move ahead with its wider semiconductor education and research activities aimed at developing Pakistan’s future semiconductor workforce.
Reference Link:- https://propakistani.pk/2026/08/29/pakistan-completes-semiconductor-framework-sets-up-three-research-clusters/
Zamir Ahmed Awan is the founder and Chair of the Global Silk Route Research Alliance, a think tank in Islamabad. He studied engineering at Shanghai University in the 1980s, and years later he went back to China as Pakistan's science counsellor in Beijing, from 2010 until 2016, working on science and higher education cooperation between the two countries.…
