IT Ministry blames SBP for the poor quality of the internet

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has been blamed by the Ministry of IT and Telecom for the poor quality of the network in the country.

This is because the SBP banned opening Letters of Credit (LCs) to import machinery and cable.

The main reason for the non-standard internet in the country is the non-opening of LCs, officials of the Ministry of IT informed the parliamentary body here on Wednesday.Zong launches Digital Payment Solution “PayMax”

They said that the State Bank of Pakistan had banned the opening of LCs in the telecom industry.

When the machinery cannot be imported, how can we get quality internet? According to IT ministry officials, the country currently has a shortage of fiber optics.

They said that there was not enough fiber available in the country.

The main reason for non-standard internet in the country is the non-opening of LCs, officials of the Ministry of IT informed the parliamentary body here on Wednesday.

They said that the State Bank of Pakistan has banned the opening of LCs in the telecom industry.

When the machinery cannot be imported, how can we get quality internet? 

According to ministry officials, the country currently has a shortage of fiber optics.

They said that there was not enough fiber available in the country to improve the quality of internet services.

The National Assembly Standing Committee on IT met here with Mir Khan Muhammad Jamali in the chair.

Committee members raised several questions regarding the quality of internet service in Pakistan.

There are neither phone signals nor internet in Karachi or Hyderabad, a committee member said.

Another committee member said that there has been much talk of launching 5G technology in the country despite the fact that 4G service is not available.

We are also concerned about the country’s service quality, according to a member of the Telecom Ministry of IT, who added that 99 broadband lines have been released to improve internet service.

Pakistan has been connected by cable from France.

“Our question is, what is the standard service on the Internet?” said members of the IT committee.

They said that there is no internet service while traveling on motorways.

Even Karachi, which is considered to be a business hub, does not have quality internet service. 

During the meeting, it was also informed that the security situation in Balochistan had also caused the shutting down of 148 mobile towers, which had affected the internet outreach to the customers.

The officials of the Universal Service Fund (USF) said that these towers are not being turned on for security reasons.

Haris Chaudhry, CEO of USF, said that terrorists had blown out internet services in Balochistan.

During the meeting, it was also informed that the security situation in Balochistan was a major concern, which resulted in the closing of 148 mobile towers and affected the internet outreach to the customers.

The officials of the Universal Service Fund (USF) said that these towers are not being turned on for security reasons.

According to USF CEO Haris Chaudhry, terrorists destroyed their 42 towers in 2022.

It was said that a better internet connection in Balochistan was related to a better security situation.

As soon as the security situation improves, the internet services will also improve.    

It was also said that 17 people who worked in the telecom industry were taken hostage in Balochistan last year.

An IT ministry official informed the standing committee on information technology that up to 5,000 sites were impacted by the national flood.

The committee members also flared up over poor quality of service issues.

The quality of mobile and internet service across the country is very poor, committee members observed.

IT Ministry officials also informed the committee that the profitability of the telecom sector in Pakistan had dipped due to current economic challenges.

However, committee member Naz Baloch said that companies were making millions of rupees in Pakistan.

“You surprised me by saying that companies are losing money,” the committee’s chairman said.

The ministry officials said that internet users increased by 60 million in four years, the additional secretary of the Ministry of IT said that from January to November last year, more than 10 million new users were added.

1.5 million internet users are increasing monthly, IT Ministry officials said, adding that 3 to 4 licenses have been issued in a month.

Despite the bad economic conditions, new companies are coming into the telecom sector, IT Ministry officials said during a briefing.

They further said that 3 million people had been trained in the IT sector, and business training included video editing. They further said that freelancers had earned $29 million last year.

The project director of the Virtual University said that Pakistan didn’t have a single solar panel technician, which made it hard to put solar panels on government buildings.

The IT ministry is at present engaged in the initial training of Solar Panel Technicians.

For the first time in Pakistan, certified solar panel technicians will be trained, according to IT ministry officials.

It was also said that only two people in Pakistan are certified to work on electric vehicles.  “We are working on training electric technicians,” IT ministry officials said.