Chairman ToAP Advocates for Policy Reforms to Ensure Industry Viability

Staff Report

Aamir Ibrahim, Chief Executive Officer of Jazz and Chairman of the Telecom Operators Association of Pakistan (ToAP), held a significant meeting with the Minister of State for IT and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, on Friday.

During the discussion, Aamir presented a comprehensive overview of the telecom sector’s vital contributions to bolstering Pakistan’s digital infrastructure.

Highlighting a substantial investment of $5.7 billion over the past five years, the sector has significantly contributed PKR 1.27 trillion to the national exchequer, while fueling broadband penetration from 32% in 2019 to 54.9% in 2024.

Aamir also emphasized the pivotal role of the mobile industry in fostering economic growth, promoting digital inclusion, and catalyzing the prosperity of other sectors.

He also pointed out the urgent need to address some key challenges facing Pakistan’s telecom sector, to help realize Pakistan’s potential for attracting international investments and accelerating the integration of future technologies.

These challenges include the lowest global average revenue per user (ARPU), a high taxation environment, soaring spectrum prices tied to the U.S. dollar, and currency depreciation. Pakistan’s IT Exports Surge by 39% in January 2024

Such factors not only deter investment but also impede consistent improvement in service quality, posing a threat to Pakistan’s potential for attracting international investments and integrating future technologies.

He highlighted that these factors adversely impact investment appetite, posing a threat to ensuring consistent improvement in service quality. The industry, he stressed must be viable in a business sense to meaningfully power and support the Digital Pakistan ambitions of the GOP.

To address these lingering obstacles, Aamir underscored the urgent need for policy interventions that the industry has been advocating for over the past few years.

These interventions include decoupling spectrum prices from the U.S. dollar, adopting a licensing payment model extended over twenty years, temporarily suspending industry contributions to the Universal Service Fund and Ignite (R&D fund), and ensuring equitable access to industrial electricity tariffs for the telecom sector.

The Right of Way rationalization is urgently required across the board to be future-ready in terms of fiber and backhaul infrastructure to truly make the digital landscape future-ready.

While the wireless broadband penetration has increased over the past few years, there is an urgent need to facilitate fixed broadband proliferation in the country.

Aamir expressed gratitude to Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja for her time and the productive discussion and offered full cooperation from Jszz as well as the entire telco industry to undertake groundbreaking and impactful initiatives for digital transformation including financial and gender inclusion.