The rollout of 5G technology in Pakistan has been delayed even again because officials want to see 60 percent of the population utilizing 4G first.
Syed Aminul Haque, the minister of information technology and telecommunications (MoITT), told ProPakistani on Wednesday that the country’s 4G service penetration is currently less than 60% and needs to be increased as soon as possible to allow for the deployment of more advanced technology.
According to him, the government has decided to prioritize 4G coverage before executing the 5G deployment timeline.
The minister stated that negotiations with telecom companies about 5G rollout issues are already underway. The IT Minister added that he will meet with the Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) to discuss legislation and the obstacles that the country faces in implementing 5G technology.
In response to a question concerning the affordability of spectrum prices, Aminul Haque welcomed the idea of cutting spectrum pricing in order to deliver more benefits to customers. The minister stated that he will meet with the advisory panel on the telecom service auction shortly to discuss the important matter.
Aminul Haque indicated that the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023, is nearly completed and that the ministry will be able to present it to the federal cabinet in 10 days, taking into account recent comments on the bill.
The IT Minister thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for including a major package of incentives for the IT sector in the fiscal year 2023-2024 budget.
