Islamabad, 30 Aug, 2023 (GNP): The interim Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Dr. Umar Saif and the Chairman of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) retired Major Gen Hafeezur Rehman on Tuesday announced that the 5G services would be launched within 10 months.
Dr. Saif stated that all the obstacles in starting the 5G services will be resolved as a matter of priority. He also said that problems linked with taxation, teledensity, and spectrum will be addressed.
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Moreover, the caretaker minister of IT and Telecommunication said that appropriate steps will be taken for delivering standardized services to the masses, and expressed the determination to help people with the 5G auction.
Meanwhile, both the IT minister and the chairman of PTA jointly said that Pakistan stands at a very low position regarding quality of service for mobile phone users at 79 out of 100 by the Inclusive Internet Index.
However, it was highly noticed that one of the prime reasons for this problem is the lack of investment in the telecom infrastructure.
'5G Auction will be held within Ten Months' @umarsaif
This was decided in a meeting between Caretaker Federal Minister for IT and Telecom Dr. Umar Saif and Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority ( PTA) Maj Gen (R) Hafeezur Rehman here on Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/3yyMPziByV
— Ministry of IT & Telecom (@MoitOfficial) August 29, 2023
The officials of the PTA informed the IT minister that telecom operators in the country only have access to 274 MHz spectrum for providing the 7th largest number of telecom users in the world. On the other hand, a single telecom operator in Australia uses above 345 MHz.
Furthermore, the PTA chief commented, “For better telecom services, we must ensure immediate improvement in 4G infrastructure and accelerate the rollout of 5G in Pakistan.”
The Ministry of IT and Telecom had previously announced to launch 5G by the middle of the year 2023, and for this purpose, the ministry was trying to attract foreign investors as well. However, the local telecom companies have announced a digital emergency because of the high cost of continuing their business and also the limitation on imports of constituents and technical parts.
