Barcelona February 28 2023: Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Syed Amin Ul Haque Tuesday said work on more broadband projects was underway to ensure provision of quality telecom services across the country.
Addressing the GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) Ministerial Conference in Barcelona, Spain, the minister said the government was committed to end digital divide between rural and urban areas as connectivity projects worth billions of rupees were underway in far-flung areas.
“More than 19 crore active SIMs, 125 crore broadband subscribers and PKR 694 billion telecom revenue are practical proofs of our initiatives for a sustainable digital future.” he said.
According to a news release, the ministerial conference titled “The path to building digital nations in the Asia Pacific: policies and strategies for sustainable digital future” was attended by a delegation from Pakistan comprising Member International Coordination Ajmal Anwar Awan, DG Wireless, MoITT Jahanzeb Rahim and CEO Universal Service Fund (USF) Haaris Mahmood Chaudhary.
Syed Amin Ul Haque said the provision of quality network facilities and protection of cellular users’ rights was the foremost priority of the government. Steps were being taken for promoting the telecom sector and resolving the issues of mobile companies, he added.
The minister noted that the process of digitalization was being implemented in order to realize the Digital Pakistan vision. Vital steps like infrastructure sharing, spectrum sharing and spectrum refarming framework for the telecom sector were also being taken, he added.
He said the ministry of IT & Telecom in collaboration with other departments of the government had been striving to improve digital literacy across the country. Several initiatives have been taken to improve digital literacy by focusing on nurturing a startup culture and promoting freelancing, he added.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s delegation led by Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Syed Amin Ul Haque had a meeting with Secretary General Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO) Deemah Al-Yahya on the sidelines of GSMA Mobile World Congress 2023.
Speaking on the occasion, the Federal Minister for IT said that the Government of Pakistan desired to build a strategic partnership with DCO to leverage the true potential of ICT for socio-economic growth in the region. He said Pakistan was striving to enhance its IT exports to DCO member states.
