Cabinet Approves New Telecom Framework and 5G Auction Committee

Since the Caretaker IT Minister took charge, there have been a lot of talks regarding the launch of 5G and the arrival of international payment gateway systems in Pakistan. Sharing a recent development, the caretaker IT minister said that the federal cabinet has given approval for a telecom infrastructure-sharing framework. Furthermore, the minister said that the federal cabinet also gave the go-ahead for the formation of a committee to auction the spectrum for 5G connectivity.

As the name suggests, the infrastructure-sharing framework assists telecom companies in jointly utilizing telecom resources. These include telecom towers, antennas, and cable ducts. It would lead to the optimization of resource consumption and the reduction of operational costs. Furthermore, the minister also claimed that the framework’s adoption would open avenues for new firms to enter the local telecom industry.

In the case of the 5G auction, Dr. Umar said that a new panel would be formed and would be headed by Caretaker Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar. The panel would help in rolling out 5G in an efficient manner. The new committee would also encompass the ministers for IT, science and technology, industries, and production, the secretaries of relevant ministries, and Federal Board of Revenue officials.

According to the minister, the committee’s primary objective would be to evaluate the spectrum’s availability across a number of frequency bands, including 700, 1,800, 2,100, and 2,600 megahertz (MHz). The committee will proceed with the auction after taking the recommendations from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

The minister further shed light on the shortage of total spectrum available to the four telecom companies operating in Pakistan.

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