IT ministry fails to win cabinet’s nod

Seeks approval of implementation mechanism for digital infrastructure initiative

ISLAMABAD:

The federal cabinet has refused to accord its approval to the implementation mechanism established for the Digital Information Infrastructure Initiative to protect cyberspace and mitigate the risks associated with cyber-attacks.

The project is being launched with an allocation of Rs5 billion out of information and communication technology (ICT) research and development (R&D) funds as bridge financing.

This is a one-off exemption granted for spending money out of the ICT R&D funds.

The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication recently tabled a plan to approve the Digital Information Infrastructure Initiative and its implementation mechanism.

However, a cabinet member argued that the IT ministry should not bring issues pertaining to procurement before the cabinet. Therefore, the cabinet approved the initiative but stayed away from giving its nod for the implementation mechanism.

The cabinet was told that in the coming years, the digital economy would be the main pillar of economic growth, which required a reliable ICT infrastructure.

It was noted that every economy in the world was striving to protect its cyberspace and mitigate the risks associated with cyber-attacks. The cabinet was apprised that the existing ICT infrastructure provided avenues for unscrupulous elements to misuse and unethically access data through unauthorised means.

Therefore, there was a dire need to safeguard the cyberspace and establish an effective mechanism to counter cyber-attacks on the critical information infrastructure.

Clause 11 of the Telecommunication Policy 2015 clearly states that Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) shall deploy a solution under a framework ensuring long-term sustainability through constant updates and upgrades to keep pace with ever-changing technological trends and capacity requirements.

On the directives of the prime minister to set out implementation modalities for the initiative, the IT ministry has held several rounds of consultations with all the parties concerned, including the Ministry of Finance.

It was agreed that the IT ministry should coordinate with the finance ministry with PTA and others acting as implementing agencies. It was noted that a steering committee of the stakeholders concerned was proposed to oversee progress on the initiative.

A cabinet member observed that procurement matters should be dealt with by the IT ministry and those should not be brought before the cabinet.

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The meeting was told that the related matter of funding had been separately considered by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), which approved a one-time allocation of ICT R&D funds amounting to Rs5 billion as bridge financing for the initiative, a decision ratified by the federal cabinet.

The IT ministry requested the federal cabinet to grant approval to the Digital Information Infrastructure Initiative, critical for securing the cyberspace along with the implementation mechanism.

The cabinet observed that approval could be given only to the initiative and not its implementation mechanism, which fell within the mandate of the IT ministry.

The cabinet considered a summary titled “Approval of the Digital Information Infrastructure Initiative”, submitted by the Information Technology and Telecommunication Division, and approved only the proposal for the digital infrastructure initiative.

An international cybersecurity and digital privacy company reported in mid-January that 15% of companies globally had experienced cyber incidents due to insufficient cybersecurity investment.

It is alarming that critical infrastructure, oil, gas and energy organisations have suffered the biggest number of cyber incidents.

According to a study conducted by Kaspersky, 15% of companies across the world encountered cyber incidents owing to the dearth of investment in that critical area over the last two years.

When it came to companies’ finances, one in five admitted they did not have the budget for adequate cybersecurity measures.

Kaspersky undertook the study to discover opinions of IT security professionals working for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and other companies worldwide regarding the human impact on cybersecurity in a company.

The telecommunications sector suffered 13% of cyber incidents due to budget constraints, while transport and logistics, and financial services’ companies each saw 8% of incidents.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 16^th, 2024.

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