Digital future depends on delivery, not policy

GSMA urges stronger coordination as govt begins 5G rollout, gender gap narrows

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan's digital future will not be defined by its policies but by the outcomes delivered, the GSMA has warned, stressing that no single organisation can deliver the Digital Pakistan agenda independently.

The global mobile industry body shared five strategic priorities in its report titled 'Digital Pakistan 2030-Building Momentum for Sustainable Investment, Trust and Inclusive Growth' for Digital Pakistan 2030, on Tuesday,, calling for stronger coordination among federal and provincial governments, clear ownership of agreed actions and regular progress reviews.

"Pakistan has established important foundations for digital growth, and the momentum of the past year is clear. Delivering Digital Pakistan 2030 will depend on moving from periodic consultation to structured implementation," said Julian Gorman, Head of Asia Pacific, GSMA.

The report highlighted the need to strengthen the Pakistan Digital Authority (PDA) as the focal agency to ensure sustained collaboration and translate agreed priorities into measurable outcomes. Among the five key priorities, the GSMA urged Pakistan to unlock investment capacity by ensuring balanced taxation and flexible payment terms for spectrum. It also called for accelerating digital inclusion by making devices and data more affordable, expanding digital skills and advancing women's inclusion. Building trusted digital infrastructure through cybersecurity, data protection and child online safety was another priority, alongside preparing for the AI economy and deepening government-industry collaboration.

IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja said the government had accelerated digital transformation through policy reforms, spectrum reforms and fibre infrastructure expansion. She said the recent spectrum auction generated $509 million in revenue while securing 480 MHz of spectrum, which she described as the largest spectrum auction in the world.

Khawaja said 5G services had been introduced in Pakistan for the first time following the auction, with the telecom industry already beginning the rollout.

Highlighting digital inclusion, Khawaja said the GSMA Gender Gap Report showed the mobile internet gender gap had declined from 38% in 2024 to 8% in 2026, marking the fastest improvement in the region. She said the government, in collaboration with the telecom industry, distributed 10 million free SIMs and digital wallets to women to promote digital payments.

Khawaja acknowledged challenges in internet connectivity, noting that broadband demand had increased by 70% over the past five years while only 274 MHz of spectrum was available to serve a population exceeding 240 million. She said the government facilitated the landing of three new submarine fibre-optic cables and revived fibreisation initiatives, with the prime minister personally intervening to remove right-of-way charges for laying fibre-optic networks.

Khawaja said the telecom industry currently contributes billions of rupees annually to the national economy, and the government's Digital Economy Enhancement Programme, supported by the World Bank, would generate billions of dollars in additional revenue in the coming years. WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM APP