𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗘𝗥𝗧 𝗛𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿 𝗼𝗻 “𝗖𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘁𝘆: 𝗔 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗰 𝗣𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗼𝗺” 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻’𝘀 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘁𝘆

𝗜𝘀𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗯𝗮𝗱, 𝗣𝗮𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻 — The National Cyber Emergency Response Team (National CERT) of Pakistan, in collaboration with the Ministry of IT & Telecommunication, hosted a National Seminar on “Cyber Sovereignty: A Basic Pillar of Freedom,” featuring a high-level panel discussion that brought together senior cybersecurity leaders representing the technology, regulatory, and financial sectors to deliberate on the evolving dimensions of cyber sovereignty and its significance for national security and digital resilience.

The event commenced with a welcome note by Dr. Haider Abbas (TI), Director General National CERT, who highlighted the importance of fostering informed dialogue and multi-stakeholder engagement on emerging cybersecurity challenges and strengthening collective efforts towards a secure, resilient, and sovereign digital ecosystem. Mr. Rafique Ahmed Buriro, Additional Secretary (IT & Telecom), Ministry of IT & Telecommunication, graced the occasion as Chief Guest and delivered a keynote address highlighting the growing importance of cyber sovereignty in an increasingly digitized Pakistan and emphasizing the need to strengthen national cybersecurity capabilities.

The panel discussion was moderated by Ms. Adeela Waqar, Director Labs, National CERT, and featured Dr. Mukaram Khan, DG Cyber Vigilance/CISO, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA); Prof. Dr. Ammar Masood, National Centre for Cyber Security (NCCS), Air University; Mr. Tauseef Aslam, CISO, Sky47; Mr. Imran Nasir, CISO, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP); and Dr. Muhammad Yousaf, Director CERT, National CERT.

The panel highlighted how cyber sovereignty is increasingly becoming a foundational component of national digital autonomy and freedom. The panel deliberated on key dimensions of cyber sovereignty, including protection of national digital infrastructure, data governance, cybersecurity capacity building, skilled workforce development, technological self-reliance, responsible adoption of emerging technologies, institutional preparedness, and stronger public-private collaboration to safeguard Pakistan’s digital ecosystem.

The event concluded with the presentation of souvenirs to the distinguished panelists by Mr. Buriro and Dr. Abbas, in recognition of their valuable contributions to the discussion. National CERT remains committed to fostering meaningful dialogue, strengthening institutional and national cybersecurity capabilities, and advancing a secure, resilient, and sovereign digital ecosystem for Pakistan.