Federal Cabinet Approves Pakistan’s First Ever Space Policy

Pakistan achieved a remarkable feat yesterday, as the federal cabinet approved the country’s first-ever National Space Policy. It is a good step as we are lagging behind in the space race. The Caretaker Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunications Dr Umar announced the decision on X. The policy was formulated in consultation with all stakeholders over the course of three months.

The minister said that the National Space Policy would allow private sector firms to “offer affordable internet services in Pakistan while enabling increased investment in our national space program”.

The interim Information Minister Murtaza Solangi while addressing a press conference along with Minister Saifsaid the caretaker federal cabinet had approved the country’s first space policy under which international firms would be enabled to render communication services via low-orbit communication satellites.

He further said that under the new space policy, Pakistan would also set up a space regulatory regime by international standards. The new policy would also lead to the allocation of funds to the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) for R&D purposes, according to the minister.

In addition, Solangi informed that the caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar had lauded the efforts of the relevant ministries in devising Pakistan’s first space policy.

He also highlighted that the approval of the first space policy meant that the private sector would now be able to offer satellite services in Pakistan. “There are many companies which are offering this. There’s Starlink, Leo, OneWeb, there are a lot of companies offering these services.” “The policy we made is a balanced policy. It means that Suparco and Paksat, which are government institutions, will provide satellite communication and imaging. Government institutions will avail their services but private customers will benefit from low-orbit technology in the private sector,” he said.

Subsequent to the approval of the policy, the “logical step” for the private companies would be to start offering these satellite services within the next month or two months, the minister said. He added that the policy was formulated so that Suparco could utilize a portion of the revenue generated through the private sector.

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