Meta donates Rs125m for Pakistan’s floods

On Tuesday, the parent company of Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram, Meta announced a donation of Rs125 million in humanitarian assistance to Pakistan in the wake of the deadly floods.

The donation was announced on Tuesday during a meeting between Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Meta’s Global Affairs President Nick Clegg.

“After the floods, the task of full recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction cannot be accomplished without the support of the private sector,” said Bilawal, noting that in these testing times, the “donation would be helpful for our flood relief operations.”

Clegg expressed his solidarity and sympathy with Pakistan on the devastation caused by unprecedented floods.

Digital future

Bilawal talked about the opportunities available to a company like Meta in Pakistan due to its young and tech-savvy population – where 64% of the population is below the age of 30 – that is highly connected due to dense telecommunication networks, massive digitization of the economy and a business-friendly regulatory regime.

“Pakistan’s IT sector has registered strong growth in the recent past, opening new opportunities for platforms such as Meta to expand its operations in Pakistan,” the foreign minister said.

The foreign minister also urged Meta to set up its office in Pakistan.

Clegg informed the foreign minister that Meta’s Pakistan team comprised entirely of Pakistani professionals.

He went on to brief Bilawal about Meta’s constant connectivity and capacity-building programs in Pakistan.

Clegg, who served as Britain’s deputy prime minister under David Cameron, reaffirmed Meta’s interest in continued engagement with Pakistan to explore the modalities of further strengthening collaborations in the digital space.