The Internet ecosystem in Pakistan is facing a major challenge due to the dominance of two communications operators who control the country’s access to the country’s optical fiber cables, according to industry experts. The Society of Wireless Internet Services in Pakistan urged the organizers to intervene and provide competition to reduce costs and improve Internet speeds.
With more than 240 million people, Pakistan still depends on the Pakistani telecommunications company (PTCL) and Transworld Associas (Twa) for its international connection, both of which work as mediators who buy the frequency range and resell it at remarkable prices.
The head of Wispa Shahzad Arshad is highlighted that this arrangement has led to some of the highest internet costs in South Asia, making the wide range cost and ineffective.
Irshad indicated that the cost of the frequency range is linked to the US dollar, which makes it vulnerable to exchange rate fluctuations. In 2024 alone, Internet service providers (ISPS) witnessed that profit margins shrink by 25 percent due to the low value of the currency, however PTCL and Twa continued to raise prices.
He added that the average broadband speed in Pakistan is still much lower than neighboring countries, with speeds ranging from 20 and 30 megabytes per second compared to 50 Mbps in Bangladesh, which is available at half the price.
The internet infrastructure in the country remains fragile, as shown in 2023 when the failure of a one -sea cable caused the country’s turmoil. Wispa has suggested several measures to address these problems, including creating new internet portals in cities such as GWADAR to reduce dependence on Hub Connectivity Hub, a model similar to the diverse Brazil system.
The association also suggests negotiating the frequency domain deals in rupees instead of dollars, as did Malaysia, and allow Internet service providers to cooperate in buying the frequency domain directly from global service providers, after the South African approach.
Another major recommendation is to create an independent internet exchange to reduce dependency on the international frequency of local traffic and enforce anti -monopoly regulations to prevent monopolistic practices. While Pakistan is scheduled to receive the additional frequency range with the upcoming Cable of Africa -1, Wispa is warning that without repairs, the new ability will only benefit from the current collapse.
With nearly 40 percent of Pakistan population still without access to the Internet, industry experts believe that the current bottleneck’s cervical fracture may significantly enhance economic activity. WisPap estimates that lower bold costs can double the country’s independent revenues to $ 2.5 billion by 2030 and accelerate the startup growth.
Irshad confirmed that this is not only related to access to the Internet, but about opening the digital capabilities of Pakistan. He urged the government to introduce policy reforms that encourage competition, and warned that failure to act would leave the country’s digital economy under the control of severe collapse.
