Islamabad:
The GSMA noted that despite the ambitions and digital talents of Pakistan, the country may delay in the region if reforms of urgent telecommunications policies are not introduced. Without a reform, investors can leave and citizens will suffer from it, he warned.
In the GSMA Digital Nation Summit 2025, Julian Gorman, head of Asia-Pacific in GSMA, identified three key obstacles to digital growth in Pakistan: high taxes, limited spectrum and political inconsistencies.
It is relevant to note that the Minister, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, jumped the high -level conference of the GSMA, arousing the frustration of leaders of the telecommunications industry.
“It is regrettable that the minister is not present,” a senior GSMA official said on Thursday during his journalists.
Addressing the media after the summit, Gorman said that the reduction in telecommunications tax was possible, even in International Monetary Fund Programs (IMF), citing Argentina as an example.
“If urgent reforms are not implemented, investors will move to other countries,” he warned. “Merdists in Pakistan can also lose their livelihoods if they do not have the Internet and adequate electricity.” He also said that the spectrum demand had increased and urged the government to fill the gap in the use and availability of the spectrum.
Gorman expressed his concern about the pace of digitization of Pakistan.
“We reach a critical point while artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies evolve quickly around the world,” he said.
He also noted that the Internet by satellite should be accelerated in Pakistan, as this could benefit the economy, the IT and social development sector.
While calling for broader use of the Internet, the GSMA has also stressed the importance of strengthening “digital confidence”.
“From personal identity and financial data to vital information, digital confidence is essential. The system must ensure consumer safety,” said Gorman. During the event, GSMA also launched its report entitled “Unlocking the digital potential of Pakistan: reform, confidence and opportunity”.
The report indicates that Pakistan is late in the deployment of 5G while other Asian-Pacific countries are growing rapidly to support intelligent cities, digital industries and inclusive growth.
He stressed that 5G is more than speed – it allows real -time services, industrial automation and digital inclusion. The report also revealed that smartphones are 40% faced in customs duties and taxes, while mobile broadband is overwhelmed by several tax layers.
The GSMA has urged Pakistan to align its tax policies with its digital development objectives. At the same summit, Bilal Azhar Kayani, Minister of State for Finance, spoke of government progress as part of the digital initiative in Pakistan.
He said economic digitization is to reform the Federal Board of Rété (FBR) with AI, to promote an economy without cash and to expand digital public infrastructures.
“We aim to digitize all government payments in the 18 months-not only to e-check, but the implementation of a system without end to end,” he said.
He stressed that the only solution to public challenges lies in digital focused systems.
The CEO of Telenor Pakistan, Khurrum Ashfaq, said that many complaints from the telecommunications sector come from unrelated problems such as the load discharge, which always has an impact on the industry.
Meanwhile, the president of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Maj Gen (RETD) Hafezur Rehman, admitted that the trip to digital Pakistan was rough and complicated. He underlined the high charges taken by various government services for the installation of fiber optic cables.
He added that the government has now decided to abolish all these accusations of “grip”.
The president of Pakistan Software Houses Association (p @ sha), Sajjad Syed, painted a dark image of the IT sector. He said that a national approach is necessary to support industry growth.
Syed also warned that the rate of growth in IT exports from Pakistan is down, what he explained was an alarming trend.
“This means that the IT industry is moving outside the country,” he said.
