The National Digital Library programme was launched by Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) in February 2004 with the   purpose to increase the access to scientific literature in Pakistan. The HEC secured inclusion in the Programme for Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) of the International Network for Scientific Publications (INASP).  

The Digital Library Office of HEC and National Academy of Science (USA) under their collaborative programme, funded under the Joint Pak-US S&T fund, provide access to Research Journals from well-reputed American Scientific Societies to meet the specific requirements of the research in Pakistani Universities.  The programme provides researchers within the public and private universities of Pakistan and non-profit research and development organizations with access to international scholarly literature based on electronic (online) delivery, providing access to high quality, peer-reviewed journals, databases and articles across a wide range of disciplines. NUST is also fully facilitated with access to the HEC Digital Library Programme.