Maj. Gen. (R) Amir Azeem Bajwa, Chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), addressed the ‘Whole-of-Government Digital Pakistan Roundtable’ at the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2022 in Barcelona.
He briefed the audience on Pakistan’s digital profile, emphasizing the connectivity landscape in relation to investment opportunities in the telecom sector.
Chairman Bajwa emphasized major regulatory interventions for the benefit of the industry and consumers, such as cellular license renewal and spectrum auction, spectrum rationalization, a 5G roadmap, fiberization of backhaul, IoT framework, quality of service enhancement, and so on.
He also discussed the PTA’s efforts to increase women and girls’ digital inclusion in ICTs, as well as the successful impact of the Device Identification Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS) in Pakistan.
During the roundtable, issues such as tax rationalization and the industry’s financial health were also discussed.
It was agreed that the industry would receive all possible support, including prudent policy and regulatory interventions, in order to address profitability challenges and seek additional investments in the sector.
At the end of the roundtable, a joint declaration was issued to reaffirm the Government of Pakistan’s commitment to the ‘Digital Pakistan Vision.’
The roundtable was organized by the GSMA in the presence of senior officials from the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications, the USF, the FAB, and industry CEOs.
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